FRENCH FOR

BEGINNERS
[All the Essential Vocabulary]

[This book is great for beginners who are just learning the French language. It has a useful listing of the
basic vocabulary which is very important for les vrais debutants. It not only has the word lists but also
the pronounciation for each word.]
 French for Beginners / Le Français pour les débutants

1. Basic Phrases / les expressions de base

Bonjour Bonne nuit

Bonsoir
/bɔʒuʀ/ /bɔn nɥi/
/bɔswaʀ/
Hello / Good day / Good morning Good night (only said when going
Good evening
to bed)

Salut Au revoir S'il vous plaît / S'il te plaît

/saly/ /ɔʀ(ə)vwaʀ/ /sil vu plɛ/
Hi / Bye Goodbye Please (formal / informal)

Je vous en prie.
Merci (beaucoup) De rien.
/ʒəvu zɑ pri/
/mɛʀsi boku/ /də ʀjɛ/
You're welcome. (formal) / Go
Thank you (very much) You're welcome.
ahead.

Allons-y! A tout à l'heure

Bienvenu(e)
/bjɛvəny/ /alɔ zi/ /a tu ta lœʀ/
Welcome (also You're welcome in Quebec) Let's go! See you in a little while

A plus tard A bientôt A demain

/a ply taʀ/ /a bjɛto/ /a dəmɛ/
See you later See you soon See you tomorrow

Pardon! Excusez-moi !
Je suis désolé(e) /paʀdɔ/ /ekskyze mwa/
/dezɔle/ Excuse me! (pushing through a Excuse me! (getting someone's
I'm sorry crowd) / Sorry! (stepped on attention) / I'm sorry! (more formal
someone's foot) apology)

Comment allez-vous ? Je vais bien Très bien / mal / pas mal

/kɔmɑ tale vu/ /ʒə ve bjɛ/ /tʀɛ bjɛ/ /mal/ /pa mal/
How are you? (formal) I'm fine. Very good / bad / not bad

Ça va. Oui / non

Ça va ?
/sa va/
/sa va/ /wi/ /nɔ/
I'm fine. (informal response to Ça
How are you? (informal) Yes / no
va ?)

Je m'appelle...
Comment vous appelez-vous ? Tu t'appelles comment ? /ʒə mapɛl/
/kɔmɑ vu zaple vu/ /ty tapɛl kɔmɑ/ My name is...
What's your name? (formal) What's your name? (informal)

Page | 1 French for Beginners

 Monsieur, Madame,
Enchanté(e) Mesdames et Messieurs
Mademoiselle
/ɑʃɑte/ /medam/ /mesjø/
/məsjø/ /madam/ /madwazɛl/
Nice to meet you. Ladies and gentlemen
Mister, Misses, Miss

Vous êtes d'où ? / Vous venez d'où ? Tu es d'où ? / Tu viens d'où ? Je suis de... / Je viens de...
/vu zɛt du/ /vu vəne du/ /ty ɛ du/ /ty vjɛ du/ /ʒə sɥi də/ /ʒə vjɛ də/
Where are you from? (formal) Where are you from? (informal) I am from...

Où habitez-vous ? Tu habites où ? J'habite à...

/u abite vu/ /ty abit u/ /ʒabit a/
Where do you live? (formal) Where do you live? (informal) I live in...

Quel âge avez-vous? Tu as quel âge? J'ai ____ ans.

/kɛl ɑʒ ave vu/ /ty ɑ kɛl ɑʒ/ /ʒe __ ɑ/
How old are you? (formal) How old are you? (informal) I am ____ years old.

Parlez-vous français ? / Tu parles

anglais ? Je parle allemand. Je ne parle pas espagnol.
/paʀle vu frɑsɛ/ /ty paʀl ɑglɛ/ /ʒə paʀl almɑ/ /ʒə nə paʀl pa ɛspaɲɔl/
Do you speak French? (formal) / Do you I speak German. I don't speak Spanish.
speak English? (informal)

Comprenez-vous? / Tu comprends? Je comprends Je ne comprends pas

/kɔpʀəne vu/ /ty kɔpʀɑ/ /ʒə kɔpʀɑ/ /ʒə nə kɔpʀɑ pa/
Do you understand? (formal / informal) I understand I don't understand

Pouvez-vous m'aider ? / Tu peux Bien sûr. Comment ?

m'aider ?
/bjɛ syʀ/ /kɔmɑ/
/puve vu mede/ /ty pø mede/
Of course. What? Pardon?
Can you help me? (formal / informal)

Tenez / Tiens Je sais Je ne sais pas

/təne/ /tjɛ/ /ʒə sɛ/ /ʒən sɛ pa/
Hey / Here (formal / informal) I know I don't know

Il y a ... / Il y avait...
Où est ... / Où sont ... ? Voici / Voilà
/il i a/ /il i avɛ/
/u ɛ/ /u sɔ/ /vwasi/ /vwala/
There is / are... / There was /
Where is ... / Where are ... ? Here is/are... / There it is.
were...

Page | 2 French for Beginners

Comment dit-on ____ en français? Qu'est-ce que c'est que ça ? Qu'est-ce qu'il y a?
/kɔmɑ di tɔ ɑ fʀɑsɛ/ /kɛs kə sɛ kə sa/ /kɛs kil i a/
How do you say ____ in French? What is that? What's the matter?

Ça ne fait rien. Qu'est-ce qui se passe ? Je n'ai aucune idée.

/sa nə fɛ ʀjɛ/ /kɛs ki sə pas/ /ʒə ne okyn ide/
It doesn't matter. What's happening? I have no idea.

Je suis fatigué(e) / Je suis malade. J'ai faim / J'ai soif. J'ai chaud / J'ai froid.
/ʒə sɥi fatiɡe/ /ʒə sɥi malad/ /ʒe fɛ/ /ʒe swaf/ /ʒe ʃo/ /ʒe fʀwɑ/
I'm tired / I'm sick. I'm hungry / I'm thirsty. I'm hot / I'm cold.

Ça m'est égal. / Je m'en fiche. Ne vous en faites pas. / Ne t'en

Je m'ennuie.
/sa mɛ teɡal/ /ʒə mɑ fiʃ/ fais pas.
/ʒə mɑnɥi/
It's the same to me / I don't care. /nə vu ɑ fɛt pa/ /nə tɑ fɛ pa/
I'm bored.
(informal) Don't worry (formal / informal)

Ce n'est pas grave. J'ai oublié. Je dois y aller.

/sə nɛ pa gʀav/ /ʒe ublije/ /ʒə dwa i ale/
It's no problem. / It's alright. I forgot. I must go.

A vos souhaits ! / A tes souhaits ! Félicitations! Bonne chance!

/a vo swɛ/ /a te swɛ/ /felisitasjɔ/ /bɔn ʃɑs/
Bless you! (formal / informal) Congratulations! Good luck!

Taisez-vous ! / Tais-toi ! Je vous aime / Je t'aime

C'est à vous ! / C'est à toi !
/tɛze vu/ /tɛ twɑ/ /ʒə vu zɛm/ /ʒə tɛm/
/sɛ ta vu/ /sɛ ta twɑ/
Shut up! / Be quiet! (formal / I love you (formal & plural /
It's your turn! (formal / informal)
informal) informal)

Tu me manques. Quoi de neuf ? Pas grand-chose.

/ty mə mɑk/ /kwɑ də nœf/ /pa gʀɑ ʃoz/
I miss you. (informal) What's new? Not a whole lot.

Notice that French has informal and formal ways of saying things. This is because there is more than one meaning to
"you" in French (as well as in many other languages.) The informal you is used when talking to close friends,
relatives, animals or children. The formal you is used when talking to someone you just met, do not know well, or
someone for whom you would like to show respect (a professor, for example.) There is also a plural you, used when
speaking to more than one person. Also notice that some words take an extra e, shown in parentheses. If the word
refers to a woman or is spoken by a woman, then the e is added in spelling; but in most cases, it does not change the
pronunciation. To make verbs negative, French adds ne before the verb and pas after it. However, the ne is
frequently dropped in spoken French, although it must appear in written French.

Page | 3 French for Beginners

2. Pronunciation / la prononciation
French Vowels

Phonetic General
IPA Sample words
spelling spellings

[i] ee vie, midi, lit, riz i, y

[y] ee rounded rue, jus, tissu, usine u

é, et, final er
[e] ay blé, nez, cahier, pied
and ez

[ø] ay rounded jeu, yeux, queue, bleu eu

[ɛ] eh lait, aile, balai, reine e, è, ê, ai, ei, ais

sœur, œuf, fleur,

[œ] eh rounded œu, eu
beurre

[a] ah chat, ami, papa, salade a, à, â

bas, âne, grâce,

[ɑ] ah longer château
a, â

[u] oo loup, cou, caillou, outil ou

eau, dos, escargot,

[o] oh o, ô
hôtel

sol, pomme, cloche,

[ɔ] aw horloge
o

fenêtre, genou, cheval,

[ə] uh cerise
e

[ɑ] Is disappearing in modern French, being replaced by [a]. Vowels that do not exist in English are marked in blue.

French semi-vowels

Phonetic
IPA Sample words General spelling
spelling

[w] w fois, oui, Louis oi, ou

[ɥ] ew-ee lui, suisse ui

[j] yuh oreille, Mireille ill, y

Page | 4 French for Beginners

 French nasal vowels

IPA Phonetic spelling Sample words General spelling

[ ] awn gant, banc, dent en, em, an, am, aon, aen

in, im, yn, ym, ain, aim, ein, eim, un, um,
[ɛ] ahn pain, vin, linge
en, eng, oin, oing, oint, ien, yen, éen

[ ] uhn brun, lundi, parfum un

[ ] ohn rond, ongle, front on, om

[ ] is being replaced with [ɛ] in modern French

In words beginning with in-, a nasal is only used if the next letter is a consonant. Otherwise, the in- prefix is
pronounce een before a vowel.
French Consonants

ex + vowel egz examen, exercice

ex + consonant eks exceptionnel, expression

ch (Latin origin) sh architecte, archives

ch (Greek origin) k orchestre, archéologie

ti + vowel (except é) see démocratie, nation

c + e, i, y; or ç s cent, ceinture, maçon

c + a, o, u k caillou, car, cube

g + e, i, y zh genou, gingembre

g + a, o, u g gomme, ganglion

th t maths, thème, thym

j zh jambe, jus, jeune

qu, final q k que, quoi, grecque

h silent haricot, herbe, hasard

vowel + s + vowel z rose, falaise, casino

x + vowel z six ans, beaux arts

Page | 5 French for Beginners

 final x s six, dix, soixante (these 3 only!)

There are a lot of silent letters in French, and you usually do not pronounce the final consonant, unless that
final consonant is C, R, F or L (except verbs that end in -r).
Liaison: French slurs most words together in a sentence, so if a word ends in a consonant that is not pronounced and
the next word starts with a vowel or silent h, slur the two together as if it were one word. S and x are pronounced as
z; d as t; and f as v in these liaisons. Liaison is always made in the following cases:
 after a determiner: un ami, des amis
 before or after a pronoun: vous avez, je les ai
 after a preceding adjective: bon ami, petits enfants
 after one syllable prepositions: en avion, dans un livre
 after some one-syllable adverbs (très, plus, bien)
 after est
It is optional after pas, trop fort, and the forms of être, but it is never made after et.
Silent e: Sometimes the e is dropped in words and phrases, shortening the syllables and slurring more words.
 rapid(e)ment, lent(e)ment, sauv(e)tage /ʀapidmɑ/ /ɑtmɑ/ /sovtaʒ/
 sous l(e) bureau, chez l(e) docteur /sul byʀo/ /ʃel dɔktoʀ/
 il y a d(e)... , pas d(e)... , plus d(e)... /yad/ /pad/ / plyd/
 je n(e), de n(e) /ʒən/ /dən/
 j(e) te, c(e) que /ʃt/ /skə/ (note the change of the pronunciation of the j as well)
Stress & Intonation: Stress on syllables is not as heavily pronounced as in English and it generally falls on the last
syllable of the word. Intonation usually only rises for yes/no questions, and all other times, it goes down at the end
of the sentence.

3. Alphabet / l'alphabet
a /a/ j /ʒi/ s /ɛs/

b /be/ k /ka/ t /te/

c /se/ l /ɛl/ u /y/

d /de/ m /ɛm/ v /ve/

e /ə/ n /ɛn/ w /dubləve/

f /ɛf/ o /o/ x /iks/

g /ʒɜ/ p /pe/ y /igrɛk/

h /aʃ/ q /ky/ z /zɛd/

i /i/ r /ɛʀ/

4. Nouns, Articles & Demonstratives / les noms, les articles & les demonstratifs

Page | 6 French for Beginners

All nouns in French have a gender, either masculine or feminine. For the most part, you must memorize the gender,
but there are some endings of words that will help you decide which gender a noun is. Nouns ending in -age and -
ment are usually masculine, as are nouns ending with a consonant. Nouns ending in -ure, -sion, -tion, -ence, -ance, -
té, and -ette are usually feminine.
Articles and adjectives must agree in number and gender with the nouns they modify. And articles have to be
expressed even though they aren't always in English; and you may have to repeat the article in some cases.
Demonstratives are like strong definite articles.
Definite Articles (The)

Masculine Feminine Before Vowel Plural

le lit la pomme l'oiseau les gants

/lə li/ /la pɔm/ /lwazo/ /le ɡɑ/
the bed the apple the bird the gloves

Indefinite Articles (A, An, Some)

Masculine Feminine Plural

un lit une pomme des gants

/œ li/ / yn pɔm/ /de ɡɑ/
a bed an apple some gloves

Demonstrative Adjectives (This, That, These, Those)

Masc. Masc, Before Vowel Fem. Plural

ce lit cet oiseau cette pomme ces gants

/sə li/ /sɛ twazo/ /sɛt pɔm/ /se ɡɑ/
this/that bed this/that bird this/that apple these/those gloves

If you need to distinguish between this or that and these or those, you can add -ci to the end of the noun for this and
these, and -là to the end of the noun for that and those. For example, ce lit-ci is this bed, while ce lit-là is that bed.

5. Useful Words / les mots utiles

It's / That's c'est /sɛ/ There is/are il y a /il i a/

There is/are voilà /vwala/ Here is/are voici /vwasi/

and et /e/ always toujours /tuʒuʀ/

but mais /mɛ/ often souvent /suvɑ/

now maintenant /mɛtnɑ/ sometimes quelquefois /kɛlkəfwa/

Page | 7 French for Beginners

especially surtout /syʀtu/ usually d'habitude /dabityd/

except sauf /sof/ also, too aussi /osi/

of course bien sûr /bjɛ syʀ/ again encore /ɑkɔʀ/

so so comme ci, comme ça /kɔm si, kɔm sa/ late en retard /ɑʀətaʀ/

not bad pas mal /pa mal/ almost presque /pʀɛsk/

book le livre /lə livʀ/ friend (fem) une amie /y nami/

pencil le crayon /lə kʀɛjɔ/ friend (masc) un ami /œ nami/

pen le stylo /lə stilo/ woman une femme /yn fam/

paper le papier /lə papje/ man un homme /œ nɔm/

dog le chien /lə ʃjɛ/ girl une fille /yn fij/

cat le chat /lə ʃa/ boy un garçon /œ gaʀsɔ/

money l'argent (m) /laʀʒɑ/ job / work le travail /lə tʀavaj/

The expression il y a is reduced to y a in everyday speech. When il y a is followed by a number, it means ago. Il y a
cinq minutes means five minutes ago. Some common slang words for money include: le fric, le pèze, le pognon,
des sous and for job/work: le boulot.

6. Subject Pronouns / les pronoms sujets

Subject Pronouns

je /ʒə/ I nous /nu/ We

tu /ty/ You (informal) vous /vu/ You (formal and plural)

il /il/ He
ils /il/ They (masc.)
elle /ɛl/ She
elles /ɛl/ They (fem.)
on /ɔ/ One

Il and elle can also mean it when they replace a noun (il replaces masculine nouns, and elle replaces feminine nouns)
instead of a person's name. Ils and elles can replace plural nouns as well in the same way. Notice there are two
ways to say you. Tu is used when speaking to children, animals, or close friends and relatives. Vous is used when
speaking to more than one person, or to someone you don't know or who is older. On can be translated into English
as one, the people, we, they, or you.
Tutoyer and vouvoyer are two verbs that have no direct translation into English. Tutoyer means to use tu or be
informal with someone, while vouvoyer means to use vous or be formal with someone.

Page | 8 French for Beginners

 7. To Be & To Have / Etre & avoir
Present tense of être /ɛtʀ/ - to be

I am je suis /ʒə sɥi/ We are nous sommes /nu sɔm/

You are tu es /ty ɛ/ You are vous êtes /vu zɛt/

He is il est /il ɛ/
They are ils sont /il sɔ/
She is elle est /ɛl ɛ/
One is on est
They are elles sont /ɛl sɔ/
/ɔ nɛ/

Present tense of avoir /avwaʀ/ - to have

I have j'ai /ʒe/ We have nous avons /nu zavɔ/

You have tu as /ty ɑ/ You have vous avez /vu zave/

He has il a /il ɑ/
They have ils ont /il zɔ/
She has elle a /ɛl ɑ/
One has on a
They have elles ont /ɛl zɔ/
/ɔ nɑ/

In spoken French, the tu forms of verbs that begin with a vowel contract with the pronoun: tu es = t'es /tɛ/, tu as =
t'as /tɑ/, etc. In addition, it is very common to use on (plus 3rd person singular conjugation) to mean we instead of
nous.

Common Expressions with avoir and Etre

Avoir and être are used in many common and idiomatic expressions that should be memorized:
avoir chaud /avwaʀ ʃo/ to be hot être de retour /ɛtʀ də ʀətuʀ/ to be back

avoir froid /avwaʀ fʀwa/ to be cold être en retard /ɛtʀ ɑ ʀətaʀ/ to be late

avoir peur /avwaʀ pœʀ/ to be afraid être en avance /ɛtʀ ɑ navɑs/ to be early

avoir raison /avwaʀ ʀɛzɔ/ to be right être d'accord /ɛtʀ dakɔʀ/ to be in agreement

/ɛtʀ syʀ lə pwɛ

avoir tort /avwaʀ tɔʀ/ to be wrong être sur le point de to be about to
də/

avoir faim /avwaʀ fɛ/ to be hungry être en train de /ɛtʀ ɑ tʀɛ də/ to be in the act of

Page | 9 French for Beginners

avoir soif /avwaʀ swaf/ to be thirsty être enrhumée /ɛtʀ ɑʀyme/ to have a cold

nous + être (un

avoir sommeil /avwaʀ sɔmɛj/ to be sleepy /ɛtʀ œ ʒuʀ/ to be (a day)
jour)

avoir honte /avwaʀ ʽɔt/ to be ashamed

avoir besoin de /avwaʀ bəzwɛ də/ to need

avoir l'air de /avwaʀ ɛʀ də/ to look like, seem

avoir l'intention
/avwaʀ ɛtɑsjɔ/ to intend to
de

avoir envie de /avwaʀ ɑvi də/ to feel like

avoir de la chance /avwaʀ də la ʃɑs/ to be lucky

J'ai froid. I'm cold.

Je suis en retard! I'm late!
Tu avais raison. You were right.
Tu étais en avance. You were early.
Il aura sommeil ce soir. He will be tired tonight.
Elle sera d'accord. She will agree.
Elle a de la chance ! She's lucky!
Nous sommes lundi. It is Monday.
Nous aurons faim plus tard. We will be hungry
Vous étiez enrhumé. You had a cold.
later.
Ils seront en train d'étudier. They will be (in the act of)
Vous aviez tort. You were wrong.
studying.
Ils ont chaud. They are hot.
Elles étaient sur le point de partir. They were about to leave.
Elles avaient peur hier. They were afraid
On est de retour. We/you/they/the people are back.
yesterday.

8. Question Words / les interrogatifs

Who Qui /ki/

What Quoi /kwa/

Why Pourquoi /puʀkwa/

When Quand /kɑ/

Where Où /u/

How Comment /kɔmɑ/

How much / many Combien /kɔbjɛ/

Which / what Quel(le) /kɛl/

9. Cardinal Numbers / Les nombres cardinaux

Page | 10 French for Beginners

 Zero Zéro /zeʀo/

One Un /œ/

Two Deux /dø/

Three Trois /tʀwɑ/

Four Quatre /katʀ/

Five Cinq /sɛk/

Six Six /sis/

Seven Sept /sɛt/

Eight Huit /ʽɥit/

Nine Neuf /nœf/

Ten Dix /dis/

Eleven Onze /ɔz/

Twelve Douze /duz/

Thirteen Treize /tʀɛz/

Fourteen Quatorze /katɔʀz/

Fifteen Quinze /kɛz/

Sixteen Seize /sɛz/

Seventeen Dix-sept /disɛt/

Eighteen Dix-huit /dizɥit/

Nineteen Dix-neuf /diznœf/

Twenty Vingt /vɛ/

Twenty-one Vingt et un /vɛt e œ/

Twenty-two Vingt-deux /vɛ dø/

Page | 11 French for Beginners

 Twenty-three Vingt-trois /vɛ tʀwɑ/

Thirty Trente /tʀɑt/

Thirty-one Trente et un /tʀɑt e œ//

Thirty-two Trente-deux /tʀɑt dø/

Forty Quarante /kaʀɑt/

Fifty Cinquante /sɛkɑt/

Sixty Soixante /swasɑt/

Seventy Soixante-dix /swasɑtdis/

(Belgium & Switzerland) Septante /sɛptɑt/

Seventy-one Soixante et onze /swasɑt e ɔz/

Seventy-two Soixante-douze /swasɑt duz/

Eighty Quatre-vingts /katʀəvɛ/

(Belgium & Switzerland) Octante /ɔktɑt/

Eighty-one Quatre-vingt-un /katʀəvɛ tœ/

Eighty-two Quatre-vingt-deux /katʀəvɛ dø/

Ninety Quatre-vingt-dix /katʀəvɛ dis/

(Belgium & Switzerland) Nonante /nɔnɑt/

Ninety-one Quatre-vingt-onze /katʀəvɛ ɔz/

Ninety-two Quatre-vingt-douze /katʀəvɛ duz/

One Hundred Cent /sɑ/

One Hundred One Cent un /sɑ tœ/

Two Hundred Deux cents /dø sɑ/

Two Hundred One Deux cent un /dø sɑ tœ/

Page | 12 French for Beginners

 Thousand Mille /mil/

Two Thousand Deux mille /dø mil/

Million Un million / miljɔ/

Billion Un milliard / miljaʀ/

French switches the use of commas and periods. 1,00 would be 1.00 in English. Belgian and Swiss French use
septante and nonante in place of the standard French words for 70 and 90 (though some parts of Switzerland use
huitante for 80 and octante is barely used anymore). Also, when the numbers 5, 6, 8, and 10 are used before a word
beginning with a consonant, their final consonants are not pronounced. Phone numbers in France are ten digits,
beginning with 01, 02, 03, 04, or 05 depending on the geographical region, or 06 and 07 for cell phones. They are
written two digits at a time, and pronounced thus: 01 36 55 89 28 = zéro un, trente-six, cinquante-cinq, quatre-vingt-
neuf, vingt-huit.

Ordinal Numbers / Les nombres ordinaux

first premier / première

second deuxième / second

third troisième

fourth quatrième

fifth cinquième

sixth sixième

seventh septième

eighth huitième

ninth neuvième

tenth dixième

eleventh onzième

twelfth douzième

twentieth vingtième

twenty-first vingt et unième

thirtieth trentième

The majority of numbers become ordinals by adding -ième. But if a number ends in an e, you must drop it before
adding the -ième. After a q, you must add a u before the -ième. And an f becomes a v before the -ième.

Page | 13 French for Beginners

10. Days of the Week / Les jours de la semaine
Monday lundi /lœdi/

Tuesday mardi /maʀdi/

Wednesday mercredi /mɛʀkʀədi/

Thursday jeudi /ʒødi/

Friday vendredi /vɑdʀədi/

Saturday samedi /samdi/

Sunday dimanche /dimɑʃ/

day le jour /lə ʒuʀ/

week la semaine /la s(ə)mɛn/

today aujourd'hui /oʒuʀdɥi/

yesterday hier /jɛʀ/

tomorrow demain /dəmɛ/

next prochain / prochaine /pʀɔʃɛ/ /pʀɔʃɛn/

last dernier / dernière /dɛʀnje/ /dɛʀnjɛʀ/

day before yesterday avant-hier /avɑtjɛʀ/

day after tomorrow après-demain /apʀɛdmɛ/

the following day le lendemain /lə lɑdəmɛ/

the day before la veille /la vɛj/

Articles are not used before days, except to express something that happens habitually on a certain day, such as le
lundi = on Mondays. Days of the week are all masculine in gender and they are not capitalized in writing.

11. Months of the Year / Les mois de l'année

January janvier /ʒɑvje/

February février /fevʀije/

Page | 14 French for Beginners

 March mars /maʀs/

April avril /avʀil/

May mai /mɛ/

June juin /ʒɥɛ/

July juillet /ʒɥijɛ/

August août /u(t)/

September septembre /sɛptɑbʀ/

October octobre /ɔktɔbʀ/

November novembre /nɔvɑbʀ/

December décembre /desɑbʀ/

month le mois /lə mwa/

year l'an / l'année /lɑ/ /lane/

decade la décennie /deseni/

century le siècle /lə sjɛkl/

millennium le millénaire /milenɛʀ/

To express in a certain month, such as in May, use en before the month as in "en mai." With dates, the ordinal
numbers are not used, except for the first of the month: le premier mai but le deux juin. Also note that months are
all masculine and not capitalized in French (same as days of the week).

12. Seasons / Les saisons

Summer l'été /lete/ in the summer en été /ɑ nete/

Fall l'automne /lotɔn/ in the fall en automne /ɑ notɔn/

Winter l'hiver /livɛʀ/ in the winter en hiver /ɑ nivɛʀ/

Spring le printemps /lə pʀɛtɑ/ in the spring au printemps /o prɛtɑ/

13. Directions / Les directions

on the left à gauche /a goʃ/

Page | 15 French for Beginners

 on the right à droite /a dʀwɑt/

straight ahead tout droit /tu dʀwɑ/

North le nord /lə nɔʀ/ Northeast le nord-est /lə nɔʀ(d)ɛst/

South le sud /lə syd/ Northwest le nord-ouest /lə nɔʀ(d)wɛst/

East l'est /lɛst/ Southeast le sud-est /sydɛst/

West l'ouest /lwɛst/ Southwest le sud-ouest /sydwɛst/

14. Colors & Shapes / Les couleurs & les formes

Red rouge /ʀuʒ/ square le carré /kaʀe/

Orange orange /ɔʀɑʒ/ circle le cercle /sɛʀkl/

Yellow jaune /ʒon/ triangle le triangle /tʀijɑgl/

Green vert / verte /vɛʀ/ /vɛʀt/ rectangle le rectangle /ʀɛktɑgl/

Blue bleu / bleue /blø/ oval l'ovale /ɔval/

Purple violet / violette /vjɔlɛ/ /vjɔlɛt/ cube le cube /kyb/

blanc / blanche /blɑ/ /blɑʃ/ sphere la sphère /sfɛʀ/

brun / brune /bʀ / /bʀyn/

Brown cylinder le cylindre /silɛdʀ/
marron /maʀɔ/

Black noir / noire /nwaʀ/ cone le cône /kon/

Pink rose /ʀoz/ octagon l'octogone /ɔktogɔn/

Gold doré / dorée /dɔʀe/ box la boîte /bwat/

Silver argenté / argentée /aʀʒɑte/ light clair / claire /klɛʀ/

Gray gris / grise /gʀi/ /gʀiz/ dark foncé / foncée /fɔse/

Some adjectives of color do not change to agree with gender or number, such as adjectives that also exist as nouns:
orange, marron, rose; and compound adjectives: bleu clair, noir foncé remain masculine even if they describe a
feminine noun. Remember to place the color adjective after the noun.

Page | 16 French for Beginners

15. Weather / Le temps qu'il fait
What's the weather like? Quel temps fait-il? /kɛl tɑ fɛ til/

It's nice Il fait bon /il fɛ bɔ/

bad Il fait mauvais /il fɛ mɔve/

cool Il fait frais /il fɛ fʀɛ/

cold Il fait froid /il fɛ fʀwɑ/

warm, hot Il fait chaud /il fɛ ʃo/

cloudy Il fait nuageux /il fɛ nyaʒ/

beautiful Il fait beau /il fɛ bo/

mild Il fait doux /il fɛ du/

stormy Il fait orageux /il fɛ ɔʀaʒ/

sunny Il fait soleil /il fɛ sɔlɛj/

humid Il fait humide /il fɛ ymid/

muggy Il fait lourd /il fɛ luʀ/

windy Il fait du vent /il fɛ dy vɑ/

foggy Il fait du brouillard /il fɛ dy bʀujaʀ/

snowing Il neige /il nɛʒ/

raining Il pleut /il plø/

freezing Il gèle /il ʒɛl/

hailing Il grêle /il gʀɛl/

It is ____ degrees. Il fait ____ degrés. /il fɛ dəgʀe/

Il pleut des cordes /il plø de koʀd/ is a common expression meaning it's pouring. Il caille /il kaj/ or ça caille /sa
kaj/ is slang for it's freezing. And remember that France uses Celcius degrees.

16. Time / Le temps qui passe

Page | 17 French for Beginners

 What time is it? Quelle heure est-il? /kɛl œʀ ɛ til/

It is... Il est... /il ɛ/

one o'clock une heure /yn œʀ/

two o'clock deux heures /dø zœʀ/

noon midi /midi/

midnight minuit /minɥi/

a quarter after three trois heures et quart /tʀwɑ zœʀ e kaʀ/

one o'clock sharp une heure précise /yn œʀ pʀesiz/

four o'clock sharp quatre heures précises /katʀœʀ pʀesiz/

twelve thirty midi (minuit) et demi /midi (minɥi) e dəmi/

six thirty six heures et demie /si zœʀ e dəmi/

a quarter to seven sept heures moins le quart /sɛt œʀ mwɛ lə kaʀ/

five twenty cinq heures vingt /sɛk œʀ vɛ/

ten fifty onze heures moins dix /ɔz œʀ mwɛ dis/

in the morning/AM du matin /dy matɛ/

in the afternoon/PM de l'après-midi /də lapʀɛmidi/

in the evening/PM du soir /dy swaʀ/

Official French time is expressed as military time (24 hour clock.) You can only use regular numbers, and not demi,
quart, etc. when reporting time with the 24 hour system. For example, if it is 18h30, you must say dix-huit heures
trente. The word pile /pil/ is also a more informal way of saying précise (exactly, sharp).

17. Family & Animals / La famille & les animaux

Family la famille /famij/ Niece la nièce /njɛs/

Relatives des parents /paʀɑ/ Nephew le neveu /n(ə)vœ/

Parents les parents /paʀɑ/ Grandchildren les petits-enfants /p(ə)tizɑfɑ/

Grandparents /gʀɑpaʀɑ/ Granddaughter la petite-fille /p(ə)tit fij/

les grands-

Page | 18 French for Beginners

 parents

/mɛʀ/
Mom la mère / maman Grandson le petit-fils /p(ə)tifis/
/mɑmɑ/

Stepmother/Mother-in-Law la belle-mère /bɛlmɛʀ/ Godfather le parrain /paʀɛ/

Dad le père / papa /pɛʀ/ /papa/ Godmother la marraine /maʀɛn/

Stepfather/Father-in-Law le beau-père /bopɛʀ/ Godson le filleul /fijœl/

Daughter la fille /fij/ Goddaughter la filleule /fijœl/

Distant /paʀɑ
Son le fils /fis/ des parents éloignés
Relatives elwaɲe/

Sister la sœur /sœʀ/ Single célibataire /selibatɛʀ/

Half/Step Sister la demi-sœur /dəmi sœʀ/ Married marié(e) /maʀje/

Sister-in-Law la belle-sœur /bɛlsœʀ/ Separated séparé(e) /sepaʀe/

Stepdaughter/Daughter-in-
la belle-fille /bɛl fij/ Divorced divorcé(e) /divɔʀse/
Law

Brother le frère /fʀɛʀ/ Widower veuf /vœf/

Half/Step Brother le demi-frère /dəmi fʀɛʀ/ Widow veuve /vœv/

Brother-in-Law le beau-frère /bo fʀɛʀ/

le chien / la chienne
Stepson/Son-in-Law le beau-fils /bo fis/ Dog /ʃjɛ/ /ʃjɛn/
(m) / (f)

le chat / la chatte (m)

Twins (m) les jumeaux /ʒymo/ Cat /ʃa/ /ʃat/
/ (f)

Twins (f) les jumelles /ʒymɛl/ Puppy le chiot /ʃjo/

Uncle l'oncle /ɔkl/ Kitten le chaton /ʃatɔ/

Aunt la tante /tɑt/ Pig le cochon /kɔʃɔ/

Grandmother la grand-mère /gʀɑmɛʀ/ Rooster le coq /kɔk/

Grandfather le grand-père /gʀɑpɛʀ/ Rabbit le lapin /lapɛ/

Page | 19 French for Beginners

Cousin (f) la cousine /kuzin/ Cow la vache /vaʃ/

Cousin (m) le cousin /kuzɛ/ Horse le cheval /ʃ(ə)val/

Wife la femme /fam/ Duck le canard /kanaʀ/

Husband le mari /maʀi/ Goat la chèvre /ʃɛvʀ/

Woman la femme /fam/ Goose l'oie /wa/

Man l'homme /ɔm/ Sheep le mouton /mutɔ/

un enfant / une
Child (m) / (f) /ɑfɑ/ Lamb l'agneau /aɲo/
enfant

Girl la fille /fij/ Donkey l'âne /ɑn/

Boy le garçon /gaʀsɔ/ Mouse la souris /suʀi/

Le gendre /ʒɑdʀ/ is another word for son-in-law.

Slang words for people and pets:

The entire family toute la smala /tut la smala/ Sister la frangine /fʀɑʒin/

Grandma mémé / mamie /meme/ /mami/ Brother le frangin /fʀɑʒɛ/

Grandpa pépé / papi /pepe/ /papi/ Son le fiston /fistɔ/

Children des gosses /gɔs/ Aunt tata / tatie /tata/ /tati/

Kid un gamin / une gamine /gamɛ/ /gamin/ Uncle tonton /tɔtɔ/

Woman une nana /nana/ Dog le cabot / clébard /kabo/ /klebaʀ/

Man un mec / type / gars /mɛk/ /tip/ /gaʀ/ Cat le minou /minu/

18. To Know People & Places / connaitre & savoir

connaître-to know people /kɔnɛtʀ/ savoir-to know facts /savwaʀ/

connais /kɔnɛ/ connaissons /kɔnɛsɔ/ sais /sɛ/ savons /savɔ/

connais /kɔnɛ/ connaissez /kɔnɛse/ sais /sɛ/ savez /save/

Page | 20 French for Beginners

 connaît /kɔnɛ/ connaissent /kɔnɛs/ sait /sɛ/ savent /sav/

Connaître is used when you know (are familiar with) people, places, food, movies, books, etc. and savoir is used
when you know facts. When savoir is followed by an infinitive it means to know how.
There is another form of savoir commonly used in the expressions que je sache that I know (of) and pas que je
sache not that I know (of).
Je connais ton frère. I know your brother.
Je sais que ton frère s'appelle Jean. I know that your brother is named John.
Connaissez-vous Grenoble ? Do you know (Are you familiar with) Grenoble? / Have you ever been to Grenoble?
Oui, nous connaissons Grenoble. Yes, we know (are familiar with) Grenoble. / Yes, we've been to Grenoble.
Tu sais où Grenoble se trouve. You know where Grenoble is located.
Ils savent nager. They know how to swim.
Connaître can be translated several ways into English:
Tu connais le film, Les Enfants ? Have you seen the film, Les Enfants?
Tu connais Lyon? Have you ever been to Lyon?
Tu connais la tartiflette? Have you ever eaten tartiflette?

19. Formation of Plural Nouns / la formation des noms pluriels

To make a noun plural, you usually add an -s (which is not pronounced).
Sing. Plural
But there are some exceptions:

If a noun already ends in an -s, add nothing. bus(es) le bus les bus

If a noun ends in -eu or -eau, add an x. boat(s) le bateau les bateaux

If a masculine noun ends in -al or -ail, change it to -aux. horse(s) le cheval les chevaux

Some nouns ending in -ou add an -x instead of -s. knee(s) le genou les genoux

Exceptions: festival, carnaval, bal, pneu, bleu, landau, détail, chandail all add -s. There are only seven nouns
ending in -ou that add -x instead of -s: bijou, caillou, chou, genou, pou, joujou, hibou. There are, of course, some
irregular exceptions: un œil (eye) - des yeux (eyes); le ciel (sky) - les cieux (skies); and un jeune homme (a young
man) - des jeunes gens (young men).
Notice that the only time the pronunciation will change in the plural form is for masculine nouns that change -al or -
ail to -aux and for the irregular forms. All other nouns are pronounced the same in the singular and the plural -
it is only the article that changes pronunciation (le, la, l' to les).

20. Possessive Adjectives / les adjectifs possessifs

Masc. Fem. Plural

My mon /mɔ/ ma /ma/ mes /mɛ/

Your ton /tɔ/ ta /ta/ tes /tɛ/

His/Her/Its son /sɔ/ sa /sa/ ses /sɛ/

Our notre /nɔtʀ/ notre /nɔtʀ/ nos /no/

Page | 21 French for Beginners

 Your votre /vɔtʀ/ votre /vɔtʀ/ vos /vo/

Their leur /lœʀ/ leur /lœʀ/ leurs /lœʀ/

Possessive pronouns go before the noun. When a feminine noun begins with a vowel, you must use the masculine
form of the pronoun for ease of pronunciation. Ma amie is incorrect and must be mon amie, even though amie is
feminine. Remember that adjectives agree with the noun in gender and number, not the possessor! Sa mère can
mean his mother or her mother even though sa is the feminine form, because it agrees with mère and not the
possessor (his or her).
C'est ma mère et mon père. This is my mother and my father.
Ce sont vos petits-enfants ? These are your grandchildren?
Mes parents sont divorcés. My parents are divorced.
Sa grand-mère est veuve. His grandmother is a widow.
Notre frère est marié, mais notre sœur est célibataire. Our brother is married, but our sister is single.
Ton oncle est architecte, n'est-ce pas ? Your uncle is an architect, isn't he?
Leurs cousines sont néerlandaises. Their cousins are Dutch.

21. To Do or Make / Faire Faire - to do, make /fɛʀ/

Present tense

Fais /fɛ/ faisons/fəzɔ/

Fais /fɛ/ faites /fɛt/

Fait /fɛ/ font/fɔ/

Faire is used in expressions of weather (il fait beau) and many other idiomatic expressions:
faire de (a sport) - to play (a sport)
faire le sourd / l'innocent - to act deaf / innocent
faire le (subject in school) - to do / study (subject)
faire le ménage - to do the housework
faire la cuisine - to do the cooking
faire la lessive - to do laundry
faire la vaisselle - to do the dishes
faire une promenade - to take a walk
faire un voyage - to take a trip
faire les courses - to go (grocery) shopping
faire des achats - to go shopping
faire de l'exercice - to exercise
faire attention - to pay attention
faire la queue - to stand in line

22. Work & School / Le Travail & L'Ecole

Page | 22 French for Beginners
 Masculine Feminine

actor / actress l'acteur /aktœʀ/ l'actrice /aktʀis/

singer le chanteur /ʃɑtœʀ/ la chanteuse /ʃɑtøz/

architect l'architecte /aʀʃitɛkt/ l'architecte /aʀʃitɛkt/

accountant le comptable /kɔtabl/ la comptable /kɔtabl/

judge le juge /ʒyʒ/ la juge /ʒyʒ/

business person l'homme d'affaires /ɔm dafɛʀ/ la femme d'affaires /fam dafɛʀ/

baker le boulanger /bulɑʒe/ la boulangère /bulɑʒɛʀ/

hair dresser le coiffeur /kwafœʀ/ la coiffeuse /kwaføz/

computer programmer le programmeur /pʀɔgʀamœʀ/ la programmeuse /pʀɔgʀamøz/

secretary le secrétaire /səkʀetɛʀ/ la secrétaire /səkʀetɛʀ/

electrician l'électricien /elɛktʀisjɛ/ l'électricienne /elɛktʀisjɛn/

mechanic le mécanicien /mekanisjɛ/ la mécanicienne /mekanisjɛn/

cook le cuisinier /kɥizinje/ la cuisinière /kɥizinjɛʀ/

salesperson le vendeur /vɑdœʀ/ la vendeuse /vɑdøz/

fire fighter le pompier /pɔpje/ la pompier /pɔpje/

plumber le plombier /plɔbje/ la plombier /plɔbje/

librarian le bibliothécaire /biblijɔtekɛʀ/ la bibliothécaire /biblijɔtekɛʀ/

police officer l'agent de police /aʒɑ də pɔlis/ l'agent de police /aʒɑ də pɔlis/

Page | 23 French for Beginners

reporter le journaliste /ʒuʀnalist/ la journaliste /ʒuʀnalist/

blue-collar worker l'ouvrier /uvʀije/ l'ouvrière /uvʀijɛʀ/

banker le banquier /bɑkje/ la banquière /bɑkjɛʀ/

lawyer l'avocat /avɔka/ l'avocate /avɔkat/

postal worker le facteur /faktœʀ/ la factrice /faktʀis/

carpenter le charpentier /ʃaʀpɑtje/ la charpentière /ʃaʀpɑtjɛʀ/

engineer l'ingénieur /ɛʒenjœʀ/ l'ingénieure /ɛʒenjœʀ/

doctor le médecin /mɛdsɛ/ la médecin /mɛdsɛ/

nurse l'infirmier /ɛfiʀmje/ l'infirmière /ɛfiʀmjɛʀ/

pharmacist le pharmacien /faʀmasjɛ/ la pharmacienne /faʀmasjɛn/

psychologist le psychologue /psikɔlɔg/ la psychologue /psikɔlɔg/

dentist le dentiste /dɑtist/ la dentiste /dɑtist/

veterinarian le vétérinaire /veteʀinɛʀ/ la vétérinaire /veteʀinɛʀ/

taxi driver le chauffeur de taxi /ʃofœʀ də taksi/ la chauffeur de taxi /ʃofœʀ də taksi/

writer l'écrivain /ekʀivɛ/ l'écrivaine /ekʀivɛn/

teacher (primary school) l'instituteur /ɛstitytœʀ/ l'institutrice /ɛstitytʀis/

teacher / professor le professeur /pʀɔfesœʀ/ la professeur /pʀɔfesœʀ/

student l'étudiant /etydjɑ/ l'étudiante /etydjɑt/

intern le stagiaire /staʒjɛʀ/ la stagiaire /staʒjɛʀ/

Page | 24 French for Beginners

retired person le retraité /ʀətʀete/ la retraitée /ʀətʀete/

Notice that some professions are always masculine, even if the person is a woman. There are
also words that are always feminine (such as la victime) even if the person is a man.

School Subjects / Les Matieres

Math les mathématiques /matematik/ Geography la géographie /ʒeɔgʀafi/

Algebra l'algèbre /alʒɛbʀ/ Physics la physique /fizik/

Calculus le calcul /kalkyl/ Biology la biologie /bjɔlɔʒi/

Geometry la géométrie /ʒeɔmetʀi/ Chemistry la chimie /ʃimi/

Business/Trade le commerce /kɔmɛʀs/ Zoology la zoologie /zɔɔlɔʒi/

Accounting la comptabilité /kɔtabilite/ Botany la botanique /bɔtanik/

les sciences /sjɑ

Economics Art les arts-plastiques /aʀ plastik/
économiques zekɔnɔmik/

Foreign les langues

/lɑg vivɑt/ Music la musique /myzik/
Languages vivantes

Linguistics la linguistique /lɛgɥistik/ Dance la danse /dɑs/

Literature la littérature /liteʀatyʀ/ Drawing le dessin /desɛ/

Philosophy la philosophie /filɔzɔfi/ Painting la peinture /pɛtyʀ/

Computer
Psychology la psychologie /psikɔlɔʒi/ l'informatique /ɛfɔʀmatik/
Science

les sciences
Political Science /sjɑs pɔlitik/ Technology la technologie /tɛknɔlɔʒi/
politiques

Page | 25 French for Beginners

 Physical l'éducation /edykasjɔ
History l'histoire (f) /istwaʀ/
Education physique (f) fizik/

Notice that you do not use an indefinite article before professions, unless they are preceded by an
adjective.

Qu'est-ce que vous faites dans la vie ? What do you do for a living?
Je suis avocate. I am a lawyer. (fem.)
Je suis professeur. I am a professor.
Je suis étudiant. I am a student (masc.)
Où est-ce que vous faites vos études ? Where do you study?
Je vais à l'université de Michigan. I go to the university of Michigan.
Je fais mes études à l'université de Toronto. I study at the University of Toronto.
Qu'est-ce que vous étudiez? What do you study?
Quelles matières étudiez-vous ? What subjects do you study?
J'étudie les langues étrangères et la linguistique. I study foreign languages and linguistics.
Je fais des mathématiques. I study/do math.
Ma spécialisation est la biologie. My major is biology.

23. Prepositions & Contractions

at / to / in à /a/ during pendant /pɑdɑ/

from / of /
de /də/ since / for depuis /dəpɥi/
about

at the house
chez /ʃe/ among parmi /paʀmi/
of

in dans / en /dɑ/ /ɑ/ between entre /ɑtʀ/

for pour /puʀ/ around autour de /otuʀdə/

by / through par /paʀ/ against contre /kɔtʀ/

in front of devant /dəvɑ/ toward vers / envers /vɛʀ/ /ɑnvɛʀ/

through /
behind derrière /dɛʀjɛʀ/ à travers /atʀavɛʀ/
across

Page | 26 French for Beginners

 before avant /avɑ/ with avec /avɛk/

after après /apʀɛ/ without sans /sɑ/

dedans / à /dədɑ/
up en haut /ɑno/ inside
l'intérieur /alɛteʀjœʀ/

dehors / à /dəɔʀ/
down en bas /ɑba/ outside
l'extérieur /alɛksteʀjœʀ/

hors de / en /ɔʀdə/
on sur /syʀ/ outside of
dehors de /ɑndəɔʀdə/

over / above au-dessus de /odəsydə/ because of à cause de /akozdə/

under / sous / au- /su/

according to selon / d'après /səlɔ/ /dapʀɛ/
below dessous de /odəsudə/

across from en face de /ɑfasdə/ approximately environ /ɑviʀɔ/

near près de /pʀɛdə/ in spite of malgré /malgʀe/

far from loin de /lwɛdə/ as for quant à /kɑta/

You can also use dessus and dessous as adverbs to mean over it / on top of it and beneath it /
underneath it, respectively. They are not followed by nouns or pronouns, unlike prepositions.

Prepositional Contractions

à + le = au /o/ at / to / in the

à + les = aux /o/ at / to / in the (pl.)

de + le = du /dy/ of / from / about the

de + les =
/de/ of / from / about the (pl.)
des

Page | 27 French for Beginners

In: Dans vs. En
Dans is used to show the time when an action will begin, while en shows the length of time an
action takes.

Je pars dans quinze minutes. I'm leaving in 15 minutes.

Il peut lire ce livre en une demi-heure. He can read this book in a half hour.

With: Avec vs. De vs. A vs. Chez

Avec implies doing something or going along with someone; de is used in phrases of manner and
in many idiomatic expressions; à is used when referring to someone's attributes; and chez is used
to mean "as far as (person) is concerned." To describe the way a person carries him/herself, no
extra word is used.

Je vais en France avec ma sœur. I'm going to France with my sister.

Elle me remercie d'un sourire. She thanks me with a smile.
L'homme aux cheveux roux est très grand. The man with the red hair is very tall.
Chez cet enfant, tout est simple. With this child, everything is simple.
Il marche, les mains dans les poches. He walks with his hands in his pockets.

24. Countries and Nationalities / Les pays et les nationalites

Africa l'Afrique (f) /afʀik/ Hebrew (lang.) hébreu /ebʀø/

African africain/e /afʀikɛ/ /ɛn/ Italy l'Italie (f) /itali/

Albania l'Albanie (f) /albani/ Italian italien/ne /italjɛ/ /ɛn/

Albanian albanais/e /albanɛ/ /ɛz/ Japan le Japon /ʒapɔ/

Algeria l'Algérie (f) /alʒeʀi/ Japanese japonais/e /ʒapɔnɛ/ /ɛz/

Algerian algérien/ne /alʒeʀjɛ/ /ɛn/ Korea la Corée /kɔʀe/

America l'Amérique (f) /ameʀik/ Korean coréen/ne /kɔʀeɛ/ /ɛn/

/ameʀikɛ/
American américain/e Latvia la Lettonie /letɔni/
/ɛn/

Argentina l'Argentine (f) /aʀʒɑtin/ Latvian letton/ne /letɔ/ /ɔn/

Argentine argentin/e /aʀʒɑtɛ/ /in/ Lithuania la Lituanie /litɥani/

Page | 28 French for Beginners

 Asia l'Asie (f) /azi/ Lithuanian lituanien/ne /litɥanjɛ/ /ɛn/

Asian asiatique /azjatik/ Luxembourg le Luxembourg /lyksɑbuʀ/

/lyksɑbuʀʒwa/
Australia l'Australie (f) /ostʀali/ Luxembourger luxembourgeois/e
/az/

/ostʀaljɛ/
Australian australien/ne Macedonia la Macédoine /masedwan/
/ɛn/

/masedɔnjɛ/
Austria l'Autriche (f) /otʀiʃ/ Macedonian macédonien/ne
/ɛn/

Austrian autrichien/ne /otʀiʃjɛ/ /ɛn/ Malta Malte (f) /malt/

Belgium la Belgique /bɛlʒik/ Maltese maltais/e /maltɛ/ /ɛz/

Belgian belge /bɛlʒ/ Morocco le Maroc /maʀɔk/

Bosnia la Bosnie /bɔsni/ Moroccan marocain/e /maʀɔkɛ/ /ɛn/

Bosnian bosniaque /bɔsniak/ Netherlands les Pays-Bas /peibɑ/

Brazil le Brésil /bʀezil/ Dutch néerlandais/e /neɛʀlɑdɛ/ /ɛz/

/bʀeziljɛ/
Brazilian brésilien/ne Dutch (person) hollandais/e /'ɔlɑ dɛ/ /ɛz/
/ɛn/

la Nouvelle-
Bulgaria la Bulgarie /bylgaʀi/ New Zealand /nuvɛlzelɑd/
Zélande

Bulgarian bulgare /bylgaʀ/ New Zealander néo-zélandais/e /neozelɑdɛ/ /ɛz/

Cambodia le Cambodge /kɑbɔdʒ/ Norway la Norvège /nɔʀvɛʒ/

/kɑbɔdʒjɛ/
Cambodian cambodgien/ne Norwegian norvégien/ne /nɔʀveʒjɛ/ /ɛn/
/ɛn/

Canada le Canada /kanada/ Poland la Pologne /pɔlɔɲ/

Page | 29 French for Beginners

 /kanadjɛ/
Canadian canadien/ne Polish polonais/e /pɔlɔnɛ/ /ɛz/
/ɛn/

China la Chine /ʃin/ Portugal le Portugal /pɔʀtygal/

Chinese chinois/e /ʃinwa/ /az/ Portuguese portugais/e /pɔʀtygɛ/ /ɛz/

Croatia la Croatie /kʀɔasi/ Quebec le Québéc /kebɛk/

Croatian croate /kʀɔat/ Quebecker québécois/e /kebekwa/ /az/

Czech la République /ʀepyblik

Romania la Roumanie /ʀumani/
Republic Tchèque tʃɛk/

Czech tchèque /tʃɛk/ Romanian roumain/e /ʀumɛ/ /ɛn/

Denmark le Danemark /danmaʀk/ Russia la Russie /ʀysi/

Danish danois/e /danwa/ /az/ Russian russe /ʀys/

Egypt l'Egypte (f) /eʒipt/ Scotland l'Ecosse /ekɔs/

Egyptian égyptien/e /eʒipsjɛ/ /ɛn/ Scottish écossais/e /ekɔsɛ/ /ɛz/

England l'Angleterre (f) /ɑglətɛʀ/ Senegal le Sénégal /senegal/

English anglais/e /ɑglɛ/ /ɛz/ Senegalese sénégalais/e /senegalɛ/ /ɛz/

Estonia l'Estonie /ɛstɔni/ Serbia la Serbie /sɛʀbi/

Estonian estonien/ne /ɛstonjɛ/ /ɛn/ Serbian serbe /sɛʀb/

Europe l'Europe (f) /øʀɔp/ Slovakia la Slovaquie /slɔvaki/

European européen/ne /øʀɔpeɛ/ /ɛn/ Slovak slovaque /slɔvak/

Finland la Finlande /fɛlɑd/ Slovenia la Slovénie /slɔveni/

Finnish finnois/e /finwa/ /az/ Slovene slovène /slɔvɛn/

Page | 30 French for Beginners

 France la France /fʀɑs/ Spain l'Espagne (f) /ɛspaɲ/

French français/e /fʀɑsɛ/ /ɛz/ Spanish espagnol/e /ɛspaɲɔl/

Germany l'Allemagne (f) /almaɲ/ Sweden la Suède /sɥɛd/

German allemand/e /almɑ/ /ɑd/ Swedish suédois/e /sɥedwa/ /az/

la Grande-
Great Britain /gʀɑdbʀətaɲ/ Switzerland la Suisse /sɥis/
Bretagne

British britannique /bʀitanik/ Swiss suisse /sɥis/

Greece la Grèce /gʀɛs/ Taiwan Taïwan /tajwan/

Greek grec / grecque /gʀɛk/ Taiwanese taïwanais/e /tajwanɛ/ /ɛz/

Hungary la Hongrie /'ɔgʀi/ Tunisia la Tunisie /tynizi/

Hungarian hongrois/e /'ɔgʀwa/ /az/ Tunisian tunisien/ne /tynizjɛ/ /ɛn/

Iceland l'Islande /islɑd/ Turkey la Turquie /tyʀki/

Icelandic islandais/e /islɑdɛ/ /ɛz/ Turk turc / turcque /tyʀk/

India l'Inde /ɛd/ Ukraine l'Ukraine /ykʀɛn/

Indian indien/ne /ɛdjɛ/ /ɛn/ Ukrainian ukrainien/ne /ykʀɛnjɛ/ /ɛn/

United
Indonesia l'Indonésie (f) /ɛdɔnezi/ la Royaume-Uni /ʀwajomyni/
Kingdom

/ɛdɔnezjɛ/
Indonesian indonésien/ne United States les Etats-Unis /etazyni/
/ɛn/

Ireland l'Irlande (f) /iʀlɑd/ Vietnam le Vietnam /viɛtnam/

Irishman irlandais/e /iʀlɑdɛ/ /ɛz/ Vietnamese vietnamien/ne /vjɛtnamjɛ/ /ɛn/

Israel Israël /isʀael/ Wales le Pays-de-Galles /peidəgal/

Page | 31 French for Beginners

 Israeli israëlien/ne /isʀaeljɛ/ /ɛn/ Welsh gallois/e /galwɑ/ /ɑz/

The masculine forms of the nationalities are also used for the language. Adjectives of
nationalities and languages are not capitalized in written French. The definite article is not used
before a language when it follows the verb parler (to speak): Je parle anglais. Notice that French
also uses hollandais when referring to Dutch people and sometimes the Dutch language, but this
is not exactly correct (just as it is not correct to use Holland when referring to the Netherlands in
English). Also notice that you do not use the definite article with Israël or Malte.

25. Negative Sentences

To make sentences negative, simply put ne and pas around the verb. In spoken French,
however, the ne is frequently omitted, but it cannot be omitted in written French. And when you
are replying "yes" to a negative question, you use si and not oui (though in Quebec, it is perfectly
fine to just use oui).

Je suis du Canada. I am from Canada.

Je ne suis pas du Mexique. I am not from Mexico.
Je suis française. I am French (feminine.)
Je ne suis pas suisse. I am not Swiss. (masculine or feminine)
Il est australien. He is Australian.
Elle n'est pas danoise. She is not Danish.
Elles sont des Etats-Unis. They are from the United States.
Ils ne sont pas du Portugal. They are not from Portugal.
Je parle chinois et japonais. I speak Chinese and Japanese.
Je ne parle pas suédois. I don't speak Swedish.
Vous n'êtes pas du Brésil ? You aren't from Brazil?
Si, nous sommes du Brésil. Yes, we are from Brazil.

26. To / In and From places, cities, and countries

Places Cities Countries

Masc. au du à de au du

Fem. à la de la à de en de

Vowel à l' de l' à d' en d'

Page | 32 French for Beginners

 Plural aux des aux des aux des

If the name of a country ends in-e, the gender is feminine. If it ends in anything else, it is
masculine. All continents are feminine. The country exceptions are le Cambodge, le Mexique, le
Zaïre, le Zimbabwe, and le Mozambique. Some cities have an article as well, such as La
Nouvelle-Orléans (New Orleans).

Je vais à la boulangerie. I'm going to the bakery.

Il vient de Londres. He comes from London.
On va en France demain. We're going to France tomorrow.
Tu viens du Mexique ? You come from Mexico?

Prepositions with Regions, Provinces & States

To / In From

Feminine
en de

Islands
à de / d'

Masc. w/ Vowel
en / dans l' d' / de l'

Masc. w/ Consonant
au / dans le du

In general, if a region, province or state ends in -e, it is feminine. Californie, Caroline du Nord /
Sud, Floride, Géorgie, Louisiane, Pennsylvanie, and Virginie are the feminine American states;
while Maine is masculine. For French régions or départements that begin with Haut(e), the h is
an aspirate h, and therefore, there is no elision with preceding words, i.e. de Haut-Rhin, la Haute-
Normandie, etc.

Elles habitent en Californie. They live in California.

Il est de Haute-Savoie. He is from Haute-Savoie.
Ce fromage vient du Nord. This cheese comes from Nord.
Je veux voyager dans le Texas. I want to travel in Texas.

27. To Come & to Go / Venir & Aller

Venir-to come /vəniʀ/

Present

Page | 33 French for Beginners

 viens /vjɛ/ venons /vənɔ/

viens /vjɛ/ venez /vəne/

vient /vjɛ/ viennent /vijɛn/

Aller-to go /ale/
Present

vais /vɛ/ allons /alɔ/

vas /va/ allez /ale/

va /va/ vont /vɔ/

Other verbs that are conjugated like venir: tenir - to hold, devenir - to become, obtenir - to get,
revenir - to come back.

Je viens des Etats-Unis. I come from the United States.

Il tient un crayon. He's holding a pencil.
Nous allons en Espagne. We're going to Spain.
Tu ne vas pas au Brésil cet été. You're not going to Brazil this summer.

► Aller + an infinitive means "going to do something."

Ils vont aller en Angleterre. They are going to go to England.
Elle va parler russe. She's going to speak Russian.
Je vais devenir professeur. I'm going to become a professor.

► Aller is also used idiomatically when talking about health.

Comment vas-tu ? How are you?
Je vais bien. I'm fine.

Page | 34 French for Beginners

► Venir de + an infinitive means "to have just done something."
Il vient d'aller en Finlande. He just went to Finland.
Vous venez de manger une pomme. You just ate an apple.

28. Conjugating Regular Verbs in the Present Indicative Tense

Verbs in French end in -er, -re, or -ir. The verb before it is conjugated is called the infinitive.
Removing the last two letters leaves you with the stem (aimer is the infinitive, aim- is the
stem.) The present indicative tense indicates an ongoing action, general state, or habitual
activity. Besides the simple present tense (I write, I run, I see); there are two other forms of the
present tense in English: the progressive (I am writing, I am running, etc.) and the emphatic (I do
write, I do run, etc.) However, these three English present tenses are all translated by the present
indicative tense in French.

To conjugate verbs in the present tense, use the stem and add the following endings.

-er -re 1st -ir 2nd -ir*

-e -ons -s -ons -is -issons -s -ons

-es -ez -s -ez -is -issez -s -ez

-e -ent - -ent -it -issent -t -ent

Sample Regular Verbs in the Present tense

aimer - to like, love vendre - to sell

aime /em/ aimons /emɔ/ vends /vɑ/ vendons /vɑdɔ/

aimes /em/ aimez /eme/ vends /vɑ/ vendez /vɑde/

aime /em/ aiment /em/ vend /vɑ/ vendent /vɑd/

finir - to finish partir - to leave

finis /fini/ finissons /finisɔ/ pars /paʀ/ partons /paʀtɔ/

Page | 35 French for Beginners

 finis /fini/ finissez /finise/ pars /paʀ/ partez /paʀte/

finit /fini/ finissent /finis/ part /paʀ/ partent /paʀt/

Notice how several conjugations are pronounced the same. This is why you must use the subject
pronouns in French.

Regular verbs

-er -re

aimer /eme/ to like, love vendre /vɑdʀ/ to sell

chanter /ʃɑte/ to sing attendre /atɑdʀ/ to wait for

chercher /ʃɛʀʃe/ to look for entendre /ɑtɑdʀ/ to hear

commencer /kɔmɑse/ to begin perdre /pɛʀdʀ/ to lose

donner /dɔne/ to give répondre (à) /ʀepɔdʀ/ to answer

étudier /etydje/ to study descendre /dɛsɑdʀ/ to go down

fermer /fɛʀme/ to close 1st -ir

habiter /abite/ to live bâtir /bɑtiʀ/ to build

jouer /ʒwe/ to play finir /finiʀ/ to finish

manger /mɑʒe/ to eat choisir /ʃwaziʀ/ to choose

montrer /mɔtʀe/ to show punir /pyniʀ/ to punish

parler /paʀle/ to speak remplir /ʀɑpliʀ/ to fill

penser /pɑse/ to think obéir (à) /ɔbeiʀ/ to obey

Page | 36 French for Beginners

 travailler /tʀavaje/ to work réussir /ʀeysiʀ/ to succeed

trouver /tʀuve/ to find guérir /geʀiʀ/ to cure, heal

If a verb is followed by à (like répondre) you have to use the à and any contractions after the
conjugated verb. Ex: Je réponds au téléphone. I answer the phone.

* The 2nd -ir verbs are considered irregular sometimes because there are only a few verbs which
follow that pattern. Other verbs like partir are sortir /sɔʀtiʀ/ (to go out), dormir /dɔʀmiʀ/ (to
sleep), mentir /mɑtiʀ/ (to lie), sentir /sɑtiʀ/ (to smell, feel) and servir /sɛʀviʀ/ (to serve.)

29. Pronominal (Reflexive) Verbs

These verbs are conjugated like normal verbs, but they require an extra pronoun before the verb.
Most indicate a reflexive action but some are idiomatic and can't be translated literally. The
pronouns are:

me /mə/ nous /nu/

te /tə/ vous /vu/

se /sə/ se /sə/

Some Pronominal Verbs

s'amuser /samyze/ to have fun se brosser /səbʀɔse/ to brush

se lever /sələve/ to get up se maquiller /səmakije/ to put on makeup

to wash to break (arm, leg,

se laver /səlave/ se casser /səkase/
(oneself) etc.)

se dépêcher /sədepeʃe/ to hurry se réveiller /səʀeveje/ to wake up

se peigner /səpeɲe/ to comb se raser /səʀɑze/ to shave

s'habiller /sabije/ to get dressed s'ennuyer /sɑnɥije/ to get bored

Page | 37 French for Beginners

se marier /səmaʀje/ to get married se promener /səpʀɔmne/ to take a walk

se reposer /səʀəpoze/ to rest s'intéresser à /sɛteʀese a/ to be interested in

se souvenir de /səsuvniʀ də/ to remember s'entraîner /sɑtʀene/ to train/practice

s'entendre
/sɑtɑdʀbjɛ/ to get along well se détendre /sədetɑdʀ/ to relax
bien

se coucher /səkuʃe/ to go to bed

When used in the infinitive, such as after another verb, the reflexive pronoun agrees with the
subject of the sentence.

Je vais me coucher maintenant. I'm going to go to bed.

Tu veux t'asseoir ? Do you want to sit down?

Sample Irregular Pronominal Verb

s'asseoir - to sit down /saswaʀ/

je m'assieds /ʒəmasjɛ/ nous nous asseyons /nunuzasejɔ/

tu t'assieds /tytasjɛ/ vous vous asseyez /vuvusaseje/

il s'assied /ilsasjɛ/ ils s'asseyent /ilsasej/

30. Irregularities in Regular Verbs

1. Verbs that end in -ger and -cer: The nous form of manger isn't mangons, but mangeons. The
e has to stay so the g can retain the soft sound. The nous form of commencer isn't commencons,
but commençons. The c must have the accent (called a cedilla) under it to make the c sound soft.

manger-to eat /mɑʒe/ commencer-to begin /kɔmɑse/

mange /mɑʒ/ mangeons /mɑʒɔ/ commence /kɔmɑs/ commençons /kɔmɑsɔ/

Page | 38 French for Beginners

 manges /mɑʒ/ mangez /mɑʒe/ commences /kɔmɑs/ commencez /kɔmɑse/

mange /mɑʒ/ mangent /mɑʒ/ commence /kɔmɑs/ commencent /kɔmɑs/

2. Verbs that add or change to an accent grave: Some verbs add or change to an accent grave (è)
in all the forms except the nous and vous.

acheter-to buy /aʃte/ espérer-to hope /ɛspeʀe/

j'achète /aʃɛt/ achetons /aʃtɔ/ j'espère /ɛspɛʀ/ espérons /ɛspeʀɔ/

achètes /aʃɛt/ achetez /aʃte/ espères /ɛspɛʀ/ espérez /ɛspeʀe/

achète /aʃɛt/ achètent /aʃɛt/ espère /ɛspɛʀ/ espèrent /ɛspɛʀ/

3. Verbs that are conjugated as -er verbs: Some -ir verbs are conjugated with -er endings.
Examples: ouvrir-to open /uvʀiʀ/, couvrir-to cover /kuvʀiʀ/, découvrir-to discover /dekuvʀiʀ/
and souffrir-to suffer /sufʀiʀ/

offrir-to offer /ɔfʀiʀ/

j'offre /ɔfʀ/ offrons /ɔfʀɔ/

offres /ɔfʀ/ offrez /ɔfʀe/

offre /ɔfʀ/ offrent /ɔfʀ/

4. Verbs that end in -yer: Change the y to an i in all forms except the nous and vous. Examples:
nettoyer-to clean /netwaje/, payer-to pay /peje/, and essayer-to try /eseje/

envoyer-to send /ɑvwaje/

Page | 39 French for Beginners

 j'envoie /ɑvwa/ envoyons /ɑvwajɔ/

envoies /ɑvwa/ envoyez /ɑvwaje/

envoie /ɑvwa/ envoient /ɑvwa/

5. Verbs that double the consonant: Some verbs, including jeter-to throw /ʒəte/, double the
consonant in all forms except the nous and vous.

appeler-to call /aple/

j'appelle /apɛl/ appelons /aplɔ/

appelles /apɛl/ appelez /aple/

appelle /apɛl/ appellent /apɛl/

34. Food and Meals / La Nourriture et Les Repas

Breakfast le petit déjeuner /pti deʒœne/ Egg l'œuf (m) /œf/

Lunch le déjeuner /deʒœne/ Cake le gâteau /gɑto/

Dinner le dîner /dine/ Pie la tarte /taʀt/

Cup la tasse /tɑs/ Milk le lait /lɛ/

Slice la tranche /tʀɑʃ/ Coffee le café /kafe/

Bowl le bol /bɔl/ Butter le beurre /bœʀ/

Glass le verre /vɛʀ/ Water l'eau (f) /o/

Salt and
le sel et le poivre /sɛl/ /pwavʀ/ Ham le jambon /ʒɑbɔ/
Pepper

Page | 40 French for Beginners

Fork la fourchette /fuʀʃɛt/ Fish le poisson /pwasɔ/

Spoon la cuillère /kɥijɛʀ/ Tea le thé /te/

Knife le couteau /kuto/ Salad la salade /salad/

Plate l'assiette (f) /asjɛt/ Jam la confiture /kɔfityʀ/

Napkin la serviette /sɛʀvjɛt/ Meat la viande /vjɑd/

Ice cream la glace /glas/ French fries les frites (f) /fʀit/

Juice le jus /ʒy/ Beer la bière /bjɛʀ/

Fruit le fruit /fʀɥi/ Wine le vin /vɛ/

Cheese le fromage /fʀɔmaʒ/ Sugar le sucre /sykʀ/

Chicken le poulet /pulɛ/ Soup le potage /pɔtaʒ/

Cereal des céréales /seʀeal/ Ketchup le ketchup /kɛtʃœp/

Oil l'huile (f) /ɥil/ Mustard la moutarde /mutaʀd/

Vinegar le vinaigre /vinɛgʀ/ Mayonnaise la mayonnaise /majɔnɛz/

Yogurt le yaourt /jauʀt/ Pasta des pâtes /pɑt/

In France, it is common to use déjeuner to mean to have breakfast as well as to have lunch. In
Canada, Belgium, and Switzerland, the meals are le déjeuner, le dîner, and le souper. The
plural of un œuf is des œufs, but fs is not pronounced: /œf/ vs. /ø/. Food is generally divided into
two categories: sucré (sweet/sugary) and salé (savoury/salty). Le pain /pɛ/ is the general word
for bread; if you want to specify white bread, use le pain de mie /pɛ də mi/ . Because the French
eat dinner so late in the evening (8 pm), young children have l'heure de goûter (snack time)
after school. Le yaourt refers to fruit yogurts and sweet puddings and they are eaten as desserts
in France. La glace is also a common dessert, and you can find several parfums /paʀfœ/
(flavors). The word for scoops (of ice cream) is boules /bul/. Many restaurants now offer take
out food options, which is called à emporter (to take away). The opposite is sur place.

Page | 41 French for Beginners

35. Fruits, Vegetables and Meat

fruit un fruit /fʀɥi/ corn le maïs /mais/

apple une pomme /pɔm/ cucumber un concombre /kɔkɔbʀ/

apricot un abricot /abʀiko/ eggplant une aubergine /obɛʀʒin/

banana une banane /banan/ lettuce la laitue /lɛty/

blueberry une myrtille /miʀtij/ mushroom un champignon /ʃɑpiɲɔ/

cherry une cerise /səʀiz/ onion un oignon /ɔɲɔ/

coconut une noix de coco /nwadəkoko/ peas les pois /pwa/

date une datte /dat/ pepper un piment /pimɑ/

une pomme de
fig une figue /fig/ potato /pɔmdətɛʀ/
terre

grape un raisin /ʀɛzɛ/ pumpkin une citrouille /sitʀuj/

grapefruit un pamplemousse /pɑpləmus/ rice le riz /ʀi/

lemon un citron /sitʀɔ/ spinach des épinards /epinaʀ/

lime un citron vert /sitʀɔ vɛʀ/ squash une courge /kuʀʒ/

melon un melon /məlɔ/ tomato une tomate /tɔmat/

olive une olive /ɔliv/ turnip un navet /navɛ/

orange une orange /ɔʀɑʒ/ zucchini des courgettes /kuʀʒɛt/

peach une pêche /pɛʃ/ meat la viande /vjɑd/

pear une poire /pwaʀ/ bacon du lard, du bacon /laʀ/ /bekɔn/

pineapple un ananas /ananas/ beef le bœuf /bœf/

Page | 42 French for Beginners

plum une prune /pʀyn/ chicken le poulet /pulɛ/

prune un pruneau /pʀyno/ duck le canard /kanaʀ/

raisin un raisin sec /ʀɛzɛ sɛk/ goat la chèvre /ʃɛvʀ/

raspberry une framboise /fʀɑbwaz/ ham le jambon /ʒɑbɔ/

strawberry une fraise /fʀɛz/ lamb l'agneau (m) /aɲo/

watermelon une pastèque /pastɛk/ liver le foie /fwa/

des boulettes de
vegetable un légume /legym/ meatballs /bulɛtdəvjɑd/
viande

une côtelette de
artichoke un artichaut /aʀtiʃo/ pork chop /kotlɛtdəpɔʀ/
porc

asparagus des asperges /aspɛʀʒ/ rabbit le lapin /lapɛ/

beet une betterave /bɛtʀav/ hamburger le steak haché /stɛkaʃe/

broccoli le brocoli /bʀɔkɔli/ sausage la saucisse /sosis/

cabbage un chou /ʃu/ dried sausage le saucisson /sosisɔ/

carrot une carotte /kaʀɔt/ turkey la dinde /dɛd/

cauliflower un chou-fleur /ʃuflœʀ/ veal le veau /vo/

celery un céleri /sɛlʀi/ venison le chevreuil /ʃəvʀœj/

Lettuce can also be referred to as la salade verte.

36. To Take, Eat or Drink

Prendre - to take, eat or drink /pʀɑdʀ/ Boire - to drink /bwaʀ/

Page | 43 French for Beginners

 prends /pʀɑ/ prenons /prənɔ/ bois /bwa/ buvons /buvɔ/

prends /pʀɑ/ prenez /prəne/ bois /bwa/ buvez /buve/

prend /pʀɑ/ prennent /pʀɛn/ boit /bwa/ boivent /bwav/

Other verbs that are conjugated like prendre: apprendre /apʀɑdʀ/ - to learn, comprendre
/kɔpʀɑdʀ/ - to understand and surprendre /syʀpʀɑdʀ/ - to surprise

When you want to say "I am having wine," the French translation is "Je prends du vin." You
must use de and le, la, l', or les and the proper contractions (called partitives) because in French
you must always express some. So "je prends de la bière" literally means "I am having some
beer" even though in English we would usually only say I am having beer.

Manger is a regular verb meaning "to eat," but manger is used in a general sense, such as Je
mange du poulet tous les samedis. I eat chicken every Saturday. Boire is literally the verb to
drink and is also used in a general sense only. Je bois du vin tout le temps. I drink wine all the
time.

37. Quantities

assez de enough (of) un morceau de a piece of une douzaine de a dozen of

une assiette de a plate of un peu de a little (bit) of un paquet de a packet of

beaucoup de a lot of une tasse de a cup of un panier de a basket of

une boîte de a box of une tranche de a slice of une poignée de a handful of

une bouteille de a bottle of trop de too much, many plus de more

un kilo de a kilo of un verre de a glass of un bouquet de a bunch of

Page | 44 French for Beginners

With quantities and negatives, you never use partitives. The construction is always de or d' +
noun.

Je voudrais prendre du fromage, mais pas de fruit. I would like to have some cheese, but no
fruit.
Il prend de la viande. He is eating some meat.
Nous prenons du riz et des brocolis. We are having some rice and broccoli.
Il y a trop de lait dans la tasse. There is too much milk in the cup.
Je voudrais un morceau de tarte. I would like one piece of pie.
Est-ce que je peux prendre un verre de vin ? May I have a glass of wine?
Je prends du vin. I'm drinking some wine.
Je ne prends pas de vin. I am not drinking any wine.

38. Commands

Use the vous, tu and nous forms for commands.

Vous form Polite and Plural Same as verb form Restez! Stay!

Same as verb form, but

Tu form Familiar Regarde! Look/Watch!
drop -s for -er verbs

Nous form Let's... Same as verb form Allons-y! Let's go!

When using pronominal verbs as commands, the pronoun is placed after the verb connected by a
hyphen. Tu te dépêches becomes Dépêche-toi! And in negative commands, the pronoun
precedes the verb, as in Ne nous reposons pas.

Irregular Command Forms

être (be) avoir (have) savoir (know)

tu sois /swa/ tu aie /ɛ/ tu sache /saʃ/

nous soyons /swajɔ/ nous ayons /ajɔ/ nous sachons /saʃɔ/

vous soyez /swaje/ vous ayez /aje/ vous sachez /saʃe/

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Ne sois pas méchant avec ta sœur ! Don't be mean to your sister!
N'ayez pas peur ! Don't be afraid!
Sachez que j'apprécie votre aide. Know that I appreciate your help.

39. More Negatives

ne...plus /nə...ply/ no longer

ne...jamais /nə...ʒamɛ/ never

ne...rien /nə...ʀjɛ/ nothing

ne...aucun(e) /nə kœ/ / / not a single one

ne...que /nə...kə/ only

ne...personne /nə...pɛʀsɔn/ nobody

ne...ni...ni /nə...ni...ni/ neither...nor

ne...nulle part /nə...nyl paʀ/ nowhere

The que in ne...que is placed directly before the noun it limits. Rien and personne may be used
as subjects: Personne n'est ici. Aucun(e) by definition is singular, so the verb and nouns must
also be changed to the singular. With ni...ni, all articles are dropped except definite articles. Je
n'ai ni caméra ni caméscope, but Je n'aime ni les chats ni les chiens.

Il n'aime plus travailler. He no longer likes to work. (Or: He doesn't like to work anymore)
Nous ne voulons faire des achats que lundi. We want to go shopping only on Monday.
Elle ne déteste personne. She hates no one. (Or: She doesn't hate anyone.)

Negatives with Passé Composé

1. Ne...pas, ne...plus, ne...jamais, and ne...rien
Ne comes before auxiliary verb, and the other part is between auxiliary and past participle.

Page | 46 French for Beginners

Nous n'avons rien fait. We did nothing.
Vous ne vous êtes pas ennuyés. You were not bored.

2. Ne...personne, ne...aucun, ne...ni...ni, ne...nulle part, and ne... que

Ne comes before the auxiliary verb, but the other part is after the past participle.
Il n'a écouté personne. He listened to no one.
Il n'a fait aucune faute. He made not a single mistake.

* Use of ne ... pas de: In negative sentences, the partitives and indefinite articles become de
before the noun (unless the verb is être, then nothing changes.)

Partitive: Je prends du pain et du beurre. I'm having some bread and butter.
Negative: Je ne prends pas de pain ou de beurre. I am not having any bread or butter.

Indefinite: J'ai un chien. I have a dog.

Negative: Je n'ai pas de chien. I don't have a dog.

Verb is être: C’est une chatte brune. It's a brown cat.

Negative: Ce n'est pas une chatte brune. It's not a brown cat.

40. Holiday Phrases

Merry Christmas Joyeux Noël

Happy New Year Bonne Année

Happy Thanksgiving Joyeux Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving (Canada) Bonne Action de grâces

Happy Easter Joyeuses Pâques

Happy Halloween Bonne fête d'Halloween

Happy Valentine's Day Joyeuse Saint-Valentin

Bon Anniversaire
Happy Birthday
Joyeux Anniversaire

Happy Saint Day Bonne Fête

Page | 47 French for Beginners

 Happy Holidays Joyeuses Fêtes

Christmas Eve or New Year's Eve le Réveillon

New Year's Eve la Saint-Sylvestre

If someone is named after a saint, you can wish them bonne fête on that saint's feast day. In
Quebec, bonne fête is used for Happy Birthday.

42. Places / Les Endroits

school l'école (f) /ekɔl/ university l'université (f) /ynivɛʀsite/

bathroom les toilettes (f) /twalɛt/ bank la banque /bɑk/

locker le casier /kɑzje/ train station la gare /gaʀ/

drinking fountain la fontaine /fɔtɛn/ airport l'aéroport (m) /aeʀɔpɔʀ/

store le magasin /magazɛ/ telephone le téléphone /telefɔn/

library la biblio(thèque) /biblijɔtɛk/ apartment l'appartement (m) /apaʀtəmɑ/

office le bureau /byʀo/ hotel l'hôtel (m) /otɛl/

stadium le stade /stad/ village le village /vilaʒ/

cafe le café /kafe/ factory l'usine (f) /yzin/

cafeteria la cafétéria /kafeteʀja/ garden le jardin /ʒaʀdɛ/

movie theater le cinéma /sinema/ castle le château /ʃato/

church l'église (f) /egliz/ cathedral la cathédrale /katedʀal/

museum le musée /myze/ zoo le zoo /zo/

pool la piscine /pisin/ bakery la boulangerie /bulɑʒʀi/

Page | 48 French for Beginners

countryside la campagne /kɑpaɲ/ monument le monument /mɔnymɑ/

beach la plage /plaʒ/ pharmacy la pharmacie /faʀmasi/

theater le théâtre /teɑtʀ/ butcher shop la boucherie /buʃʀi/

park le parc /paʀk/ candy store la confiserie /kɔfizʀi/

restaurant le restaurant /ʀɛstɔʀɑ/ police station la gendarmerie /ʒɑdaʀm(ə)ʀi/

hospital l'hôpital (m) /ɔpital/ town hall la mairie /mɛʀi/

post office la poste /pɔst/ square la place /plas/

home la maison /mɛzɔ/ bookstore la librairie /libʀɛʀi/

city la ville /vil/ grocery store l'épicerie (f) /episʀi/

supermarket le supermarché /sypɛʀmaʀʃe/ pastry shop la pâtisserie /pɑtisʀi/

delicatessen la charcuterie /ʃaʀkytʀi/ fish market la poissonnerie /pwasɔnʀi/

Nowadays, la médiathèque /medjatɛk/ is replacing bibliothèque because most libraries also

have DVDs and CDs to lend, not just books. You may also hear la cantine /kɑtin/ to refer to the
cafeteria in a school.

43. Transportation

by bike en vélo (m) /ɑ velo/

by bus en bus (m) /ɑ bus/

by moped en scooter (m) /ɑ skutœʀ/

by car en voiture (f) /ɑ vwatyʀ/

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 by motorcycle à moto (f) /ɑ moto/

by subway en métro (m) /ɑ metʀo/

on foot à pied (m) /a pje/

by plane en avion (m) /ɑ navjɔ/

by train en train (m) /ɑ tʀɛ/

by boat en bateau (m) /ɑ bato/

Instead of using a specific verb of movement (drive, fly, walk) before a location, French actually
uses a more general verb + the location + the manner of movement.

I walk to school. = Je vais à l'école à pied. (I go to school on foot.)

I'm flying to New York. = Je vais à New York en avion. (I go to New York by plane.)

Common slang words for car/automobile are une bagnole /baɲɔl/ or une caisse /kɛs/. In Quebec,
it's un char /ʃaʀ/.

44. To Want & To Be Able To

vouloir /vulwaʀ/ -to want and pouvoir /puvwaʀ/ - to be able to, can

Present

veux /vø/ voulons /vulɔ/

veux /vø/ voulez /vule/

veut /vø/ veulent /vœl/

Page | 50 French for Beginners

peux /pø/ pouvons /puvɔ/

peux /pø/ pouvez /puve/

peut /pø/ peuvent /pœv/

Voulez-vous? can mean Do you want? or Will you? The past participles are voulu and pu and
both are conjugated with avoir. The conditional forms of vouloir are used in the expression
"would like" i.e. I'd like = je voudrais, you'd like = tu voudrais, he'd/she'd like = il/elle
voudrait, we'd like = nous voudrions, you'd like = vous voudriez, they'd like = ils/elles
voudraient.

► You do not need to use pouvoir after verbs that involve the senses, such as voir (to see) and
entendre (to hear). Je ne vois pas / Je n'entends pas can mean I don't see or I can't see / I don't
hear or I can't hear depending on the context.

45. The House and Yard / La maison et le jardin

House la maison /mɛzɔ/ Yard le jardin /ʒaʀdɛ/

Apartment l'appartement (m) /apaʀtəmɑ/ Shrub l'arbuste (m) /aʀbyst/

le gazon / la /gazɔ/
Bedroom la chambre /ʃɑbʀ/ Lawn/grass
pelouse /p(ə)luz/

Hallway le couloir /kulwaʀ/ Bush le buisson /bɥisɔ/

Kitchen la cuisine /kɥizin/ Tree l'arbre (m) /aʀbʀ/

Storeroom le débarras /debaʀa/ Lawn mower la tondeuse à gazon /tɔdœzagazɔ/

Stairs l'escalier (m) /ɛskalje/ Hose le tuyau d'arrosage /tɥijodaʀozaʒ/

Floor l'étage (m) /etaʒ/ Watering can l'arrosoir (m) /aʀozaʒ/

/liviŋ/
Living Room le living / le salon Rake le râteau /ʀɑto/
/salɔ/

Page | 51 French for Beginners

Closet la penderie /pɑdʀi/ Hoe la bêche /bɛʃ/

Room la pièce /pjɛs/ Clippers le cisaille /sizɑj/

le rez-de-
Ground Floor /ʀɛdʃose/ Shovel la pelle /pɛl/
chaussée

Dining Room la salle à manger /salamɑʒe/ Sprinkler l'arroseur (m) /aʀozœʀ/

Bathroom la salle de bains /saldəbɛ/ Lock (door) la serrure /seʀyʀ/

Terrace, patio la terrasse /tɛʀas/ Lock (bolt) le verrou /vɛʀu/

Attic le grenier /gʀənje/ Padlock le cadenas /kadna/

Chimney la cheminée /ʃ(ə)mine/ Hinges la charnière /ʃaʀnjɛʀ/

Roof le toit /twɑ/ Key la clé /kle/

Garage le garage /gaʀaʒ/ Keychain le porte-clé /pɔʀtkle/

Driveway l'allée (f) /ale/ Keyhole le trou de la serrure seʀyʀ/

Sidewalk le trottoir /tʀɔtwaʀ/ Doorknob la poignée de porte /pwaɲedəpɔʀt/

Porch le porche /pɔʀʃ/ Tile roofing les tuiles (f) /tɥil/

Basement le sous-sol /susɔl/ Clapboard/Shingle les bardeaux (m) /baʀdo/

Cellar la cave /kav/ Slate roofing l'ardoise (f) /aʀdwaz/

You may also see the words la loggia /lɔdʒja/ (small room off a large room - sometimes like a
pantry) and la veranda /veʀɑda/ (enclosed porch/balcony), as well as les toilettes /twalɛt/ (a
separate room just for the toilet), for parts of a house or apartment.

46. Furniture and Appliances / Les meubles et l'Electromenager

Page | 52 French for Beginners

Furniture les meubles /mœbl/ Appliances l'électroménager /elɛktʀomenaʒe/

Shelf l'étagère (f) /etaʒɛʀ/ Thermostat le thermostat /tɛʀmɔsta/

Air
Desk le bureau /byʀo/ le climatiseur /klimatizœʀ/
Conditioner

Chair la chaise /ʃɛz/ Fan le ventilateur /vɑtilatœʀ/

Dresser la commode /kɔmɔd/ Rocking chair le fauteuil à bascule /f tœjabask l/

Curtain le rideau /ʀido/ Stool le tabouret /tabuʀɛ/

Curtain rod la tringle /tʀɛgl/ Cushion le coussin /kusɛ/

Shutters les volets (m) /vɔlɛ/ Carpet la moquette /mɔkɛt/

Mixer /
Blinds les stores (m) /stɔʀ/ le batteur électrique /batœʀelɛktʀik/
Beater

Window la fenêtre /fənɛtʀ/ Blender le mixeur /miksœʀ/

le lit / le
Bed /li/ /plymaʀ/ Can opener l'ouvre-boîte (m) /uvʀəbwat/
plumard

Door la porte /pɔʀt/ Toaster le grille-pain /gʀijpɛ/

Closet le placard /plakaʀ/ Coffee maker la cafétière /kaftjɛʀ/

Rug le tapis /tapi/ Coffee press le moulin à café /mulɛ na kafe/

Lamp la lampe /lɑp/ Kettle la bouilloire /bujwaʀ/

Nightstand la table de nuit /tabldənɥi/ Sheet le drap /dʀa/

Answering
le répondeur /ʀepɔdœʀ/ Blanket la couverture /kuvɛʀtyʀ/
machine

Stereo la chaîne hi fi /ʃɛn i fi/ Mattress le matelas /matla/

Television la télé(vision) /televizjɔ/ Bunkbeds les lits superposés /lisypɛʀpoze/

Page | 53 French for Beginners

 (m)

le
VCR /maɲetɔskɔp/ Lightswitch l'interrupteur (m) /ɛteʀyptœʀ/
magnétoscope

Remote la
/telekɔmɑd/ Lampshade l'abat-jour (m) /abaʒuʀ/
Control télécommande

Computer l'ordinateur (m) /ɔʀdinatœʀ/ Faucet le robinet /ʀɔbinɛ/

Radio la radio /ʀadjo/ Drain/Piping la canalisation /kanalizasjɔ/

Fridge le frigo /fʀigo/ Towel bar le porte-serviettes /pɔʀtsɛʀvjɛt/

Laundry
Refrigerator le réfrigérateur /ʀefʀiʒeʀatœʀ/ la buanderie /bɥɑdʀi/
room

Freezer le congélateur /kɔʒelatœʀ/ Bleach la javel /ʒavɛl/

(Coffee) Laundry
la table (basse) /tabl bas/ le panier à linge /panje a lɛʒ/
Table basket

Sink l'évier (m) /evje/ Clothespin la pince à linge /pɛs a lɛʒ/

Washing la machine à laver / /maʃinalave/

Bathtub la baignoire /bɛɲwaʀ/
Machine le lave-linge /lavlɛʒ/

Stove la cuisinière /kɥizinjɛʀ/ Clothes Dryer le sèche-linge /sɛʃlɛʒ/

Oven le four /fuʀ/ Iron le fer à repasser /fɛʀaʀəpase/

la planche à
Dishwasher le lave-vaisselle /lavvɛsɛl/ Ironing board /plɑʃaʀəpase/
repasser

le four à micro-
Microwave /fuʀamikʀoɔd/ Hanger le cintre /sɛtʀ/
ondes

Shower la douche /duʃ/ Vacuum l'aspirateur (m) /aspiʀatœʀ/

Pillow l'oreiller /ɔʀɛje/ Broom le balai /balɛ/

Page | 54 French for Beginners

Mirror le miroir /miʀwaʀ/ Dustpan la pelle /pɛl/

Ceiling le plafond /plafɔ/ Mop la serpillière /sɛʀpijɛʀ/

Floor le plancher /plɑʃe/ Garbage les ordures (f) /ɔʀdyʀ/

Armchair le fauteuil /f tœj/ Garbage bag le sac poubelle /sakpubɛl/

Clock la pendule /pɑdyl/ Garbage can la poubelle /pubɛl/

Bedspread le couvre-lit /kuvʀəli/ Flyswatter la tapette à mouche /tapɛtamuʃ/

Vase le vase /vɑz/ Clothes Dryer le séchoir /seʃwaʀ/

Bathroom
le lavabo /lavabo/ Hair Dryer le sèche-cheveux /seʃaʃəvø/
sink

Futon couch le clic-clac /klik klak/ Couch/Sofa le canapé / le sofa /kanape/ /sɔfa/

DVD Player le lecteur de DVD /lɛktœʀdədevede/

Monte le son. / Baisse le son. Turn up the volume. / Turn down the volume.
Allume la lumière. / Eteinds la télé. Turn on the light. / Turn off the television.

Adjective Comparative Superlative

bon good meilleur/e better le/la meilleur/e best

mauvais bad pire worse le/la pire worst

petit small moindre less le/la moindre least

Adverb Comparative Superlative

bien well mieux better le mieux best

Page | 55 French for Beginners

 beaucoup much plus more le plus most

mal badly pis worse le pis worst

peu little moins less le moins least

Only use the irregular forms of mauvais in the abstract sense. If the idea is concrete, you may
use plus/moins mauvais and le/la mauvais.

49. Clothing / Les vetements

pajamas le pyjama boxer shorts le caleçon

jewelry le bijou briefs le slip

necklace le collier panties la culotte

jeans le jean tuxedo le smoking

pants le pantalon bowtie le nœud papillon

sweater le pull vest/cardigan le gilet

turtleneck le col roulé flip flops les tongs

raincoat l'imperméable (m) sleeve la manche

blouse le chemisier pocket la poche

bra le soutien-gorge decorative scarf le foulard

slip le jupon man's suit le costume

coat le manteau woman's suit le tailleur

tennis shoes des tennis (m) slippers des pantoufles (f)

Page | 56 French for Beginners

 swimsuit le maillot de bain jacket le blouson

shorts le short underwear les sous-vêtements

bracelet le bracelet gloves les gants (m)

charm le porte-bonheur mittens les moufles (f)

t-shirt le tee-shirt belt la ceinture

hat le chapeau cap la casquette

ring la bague skirt la jupe

chain la chaînette dress la robe

earrings les boucles d'oreilles (f) sandal la sandale

pin l'épingle (f) boots des bottes (f)

sock la chaussette blazer/coat la veste

shoe la chaussure scarf l'écharpe (f)

man's shirt la chemise tie la cravate

hooded jacket l'anorak slipper shoes des chaussons

sneakers des baskets high heels des escarpins

track suit le jogging long shorts le bermuda

size (clothes) la taille size (shoes) la pointure

Les bas (stockings) and les collants (tights) are popular in France. Chaussures à talons hauts
are high-heeled shoes, while chaussures à talons plats are flat shoes. Chaussures de ville are
dress shoes. A slang word for clothes is les fringues.

50. To Wear

Page | 57 French for Beginners

 Mettre /mɛtʀ/ - to put, to put on, wear

Present

mets /mɛ/ mettons /mɛtɔ/

mets /mɛ/ mettez /mɛte/

met /mɛ/ mettent /mɛt/

Other verbs that are conjugated like mettre: promettre - to promise and permettre - to permit.
The past participle of mettre is mis and it is conjugated with avoir.

Porter is actually the verb to wear, but the French use mettre also.

Il / Elle te va bien. It looks good on you. (informal)

Il / Elle vous va bien. It looks good on you. (formal)

Ils / Elles te vont bien. They look good on you. (informal)

Ils / Elles vous vont bien. They look good on you. (formal)

52. Preceding & Plural Adjectives

Masculine Feminine

Adjective Singular Plural Singular Plural

beautiful beau (bel) beaux belle belles

good bon bons bonne bonnes

dear cher chers chère chères

crazy fou (fol) foux folle folles

Page | 58 French for Beginners

 nice gentil gentils gentille gentilles

big grand grands grande grandes

large gros gros grosse grosses

young jeune jeunes jeune jeunes

pretty joli jolis jolie jolies

long long longs longue longues

bad mauvais mauvais mauvaise mauvaises

better, best meilleur meilleurs meilleure meilleures

soft mou (mol) moux molle molles

new nouveau (nouvel) nouveaux nouvelle nouvelles

little petit petits petite petites

old vieux (vieil) vieux vieille vieilles

The masculine singular and plural are pronounced the same, as are the feminine singular and
plural. These are the most common adjectives that go before the noun. An acronym to
remember which ones go before the noun is BRAGS: Beauty, Resemblance (même and autre),
Age/Order (premier and dernier), Goodness, and Size. All other adjectives, except numbers, go
after the noun. The five words in parentheses (bel, fol, mol, nouvel, and vieil) are used before
masculine singular words beginning with a vowel or a silent h.

A few adjectives can be used before or after the noun, and the meaning changes accordingly.
When used before the noun, they take a figurative meaning; and when used after, they take a
literal meaning. Before plural adjectives preceding plural nouns, you use de instead of des to
mean some. Ex: Some old monuments. De vieux monuments.

53. Adjectives: Formation of Feminine

Almost all adjectives must agree in number and gender with the noun they modify. Most

Page | 59 French for Beginners

adjectives are given in the masculine form, so to change to the feminine forms, follow these
rules:

Masculine Feminine Adjective

Add -e brun brune brown

fatigué fatiguée tired

If it already ends in -e, add nothing jeune jeune young

-x changes to -se généreux généreuse generous

Exceptions: faux fausse false

roux rousse red (hair)

doux douce sweet, soft

-il, -el, and -eil change to

naturel naturelle natural
-ille, -elle, and -eille

-et changes to -ète inquiet inquiète worried

Exceptions: muet muette silent

coquet coquette stylish

-en and -on change to

Italien Italienne Italian
-enne and -onne

-er changes to -ère cher chère dear, expensive

-f changes to -ve actif active active

-c changes to -che blanc blanche white

public publique public

Exceptions:
grec grecque Greek

-g changes to -gue long longue long

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 -eur changes to -euse if adjective
menteur menteuse liar
is derived from verb

-eur changes to -rice if adjective

créateur créatrice creator
is not same as verb

-eur changes to -eure with

inférieur inférieure inferior
adjectives of comparison

épais épaisse thick

And a few completely irregular ones: favori favorite favorite

frais fraîche fresh, cool

54. Forming Plurals: Adjectives

To form the feminine plural, just add an -s, unless it already ends in an s, then add nothing. To
form the masculine plural, just add an -s, except in these cases: -al becomes -aux (exceptions:
banal - banals; final - finals); and if it ends in an x or s already, add nothing.

Masculine Singular Masculine Plural

national national nationaux

general général généraux

Feminine Singular Feminine Plural

national nationale nationales

general générale générales

And of course there are more exceptions... some adjectives are invariable and do not have
feminine or plural forms. Compound adjectives, such as bleu clair (light blue) and vert foncé
(dark green), adjectives that are also nouns, such as or (gold), argent (silver), marron
(chestnut), and the words chic (stylish), bon marché or meilleur marché (inexpensive) never
change.

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55. More Adjectives

short
court/e different différent/e boring ennuyeux/euse
(length)

loud, noisy bruyant/e situated situé/e crazy fou/folle

elegant élégant/e big gros/se interesting intéressant/e

tight,
étroit/e curious curieux/euse sensitive sensible
narrow

several plusieurs nervous nerveux/euse athletic sportif/sportive

pointed pointu/e only seul/e stubborn têtu/e

bright vif/vive amusing amusant/e shy timide

cute mignon/ne touching émouvant/e hard-working travailleur/euse

drôle,
perfect parfait/e funny optimistic optimiste
marrant/e

ready prêt/e heavy lourd/e pessimistic pessimiste

sad triste careful prudent/e tolerant tolérant/e

clever malin/maligne dirty sale pretentious prétentieux/euse

lazy paresseux/euse tired fatigué/e ambitious ambitieux/se

generous généreux/euse angry fâché/e pleasant agréable

famous célèbre annoyed irrité/e enthusiastic enthousiaste

decorated décoré/e old âgé/e honest honnête

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Remember the first word is the masculine and the second is the feminine. The addition of an e
for the feminine form allows the last consonant to be voiced. These adjectives go after the noun.

Normally, the verb rendre means to give something that you owe to someone, such as On rend
ses devoirs au professeur. It can also be used in the sense of to represent. But rendre +
adjective means to make someone or something + adjective.

Tu me rends si heureuse ! You make me so happy!

Le fait qu'il ne possède pas de voiture le rend triste. The fact that he doesn't have a car makes
him sad.

Some common slang adjectives that are used constantly in everyday speech:

chouette great, good minable mediocre

con / conne stupid, dumb moche ugly, unpleasant

débile idiotic sensass sensational

dégueu(lasse) disgusting, bad super marvellous

extra extraordinary sympa nice, pleasant

génial very interesting tarte inane

impec perfect tocard ridiculous, deplorable

The intensifiers vachement and drôlement are also used often, meaning very or really.

Il est vachement sympa. = He is really nice.

Elle est drôlement triste. = She is very sad.

56. Problem Verbs

Some verbs in French present problems because they have several translations in English. Other
verbs can have several translations in French, but fewer meanings in English.

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visiter - to visit places
rendre visite à - to visit people

apporter - to bring things to some place

emporter - to take things from some place
amener - to bring someone to some place
emmener - to take someone from some place

apprendre quelque chose - to learn something

apprendre quelque chose à quelqu'un - to teach someone something

rencontrer - to meet
faire la connaissance de - to meet someone for the first time
retrouver - to meet (for an appointment)

partir - to leave (from or for a place)

quitter - to leave (a person or place)
sortir - to go out
s'en aller - to go away
laisser - to leave something behind

retourner - to go back (to where speaker is not)

revenir - to come back (to where speaker currently is)
rentrer - to come or go home
rendre - to return or give something back

faire - to make
fabriquer - to produce
obliger - to make someone do something
rendre - to make someone + adjective

► After some verbs, the word ne is required, but this does not imply negation: craindre,
redoûter, empêcher
Je crains qu'il ne fasse trop froid. I'm afraid that it's too cold.

► And a few verbs only require ne and not pas in the negative, but this is elevated or literary
language: cesser, oser, pouvoir, savoir
Je ne peux vivre sans toi. I cannot live without you.

57. C'est / Il est + Adjective + A / de + Infinitive

C'est + adjective + à + infinitive is used when the idea has already been mentioned; while il est
+ adjective + de + infinitive is used when the idea has not yet been mentioned. Also, the c'est

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construction is used when you do not use a direct object after the infinitive of the transitive verb,
and the il est construction is used when you do.

Est-ce qu'on peut apprendre le chinois en un an ? Can you learn Chinese in one year?
Non, c'est impossible à apprendre en un an ! No, it's impossible to learn in one year! (The idea,
Chinese, has already been mentioned, and there is no direct object.)
OR:
Non, il est impossible d'apprendre le chinois en un an ! (This sentence contains the direct
object after the infinitive.)

Il est facile d'apprendre l'italien. It is easy to learn Italian. (The idea has not already been
mentioned, and the direct object is used.)

► Adjectives that express a certain emotion require de before the infinitive: content, désolé,
furieux, heureux, triste
Je suis contente de vous voir. I am happy to see you.

► Other adjectives require à before the infinitive: agréable, pénible, terrible, amusant,
intéressant, ennuyeux, léger, lourd, lent, rapide, premier, dernier, prêt, seul
Il est prêt à partir. He is ready to leave.

A longer list of adjectives that require à or de before an infinitive can be found at 91. on French
V.

► In addition, when quelque chose is followed by an adjective, de is inserted between the two.
quelque chose d'intéressant = something interesting

58. Sports & Instruments

Soccer le football Softball le softball

Hockey le hockey Golf le golf

Football le football américain Bicycling le vélo

Basketball le basket Surfing le surf

Baseball le base-ball Dirt/Motor biking le bicross

Horse-back riding l'équitation; du cheval French horn le cor d'harmonie

Tennis le tennis violin le violon

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 Skiing le ski guitar la guitare

Volleyball le volley drum le tambour

Wrestling la lutte / le catch tuba le tuba

Jogging le jogging flute la flûte

Ice-skating le patin à glace trombone le trombone

Swimming la natation clarinet la clarinette

Track and Field l'athlétisme cello le violoncelle

Bowling le bowling harp la harpe

La lutte is regular wrestling (the real Greco-Roman sport), while le catch is professional/fake
wrestling.

Faire de + a sport means to play. Jouer à + a sport also means to play, as does jouer de + an
instrument.

Tu fais du foot. You play soccer.

J'aime jouer au tennis. I like to play tennis.
Je peux jouer de la guitare. I can play the guitar.
Nous jouons de la clarinette. We play the clarinet.
Il veut jouer du tuba. He wants to play the tuba.

59. Nature

air l'air (m) frost la gelée rose la rose

archipelago l'archipel (m) grass l'herbe (f) sand le sable

bank la rive gulf le golfe sea la mer

bay la baie hail la grêle shadow l'ombre (f)

barn la grange hay le foin sky le ciel

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 beach la plage high tide la marée haute snow la neige

branch la branche hill la colline soil la terre

bridge le pont ice la glace south le sud

spring
bud le bouton island I'île (f) la source
(water)

bush le buisson isthmus l'isthme star l'étoile (f)

cape le cap jungle la jungle stem la tige

l'orage (m) / la
cave la caverne lake le lac storm
tempête

city la ville leaf la feuille strait le détroit

climate le climat light la lumière stream le ruisseau

cloud le nuage lightning l'éclair (m) street la rue

coast la côte lily le lis sun le soleil

comet la comète low tide la marée basse sunflower le tournesol

la
constellation meadow le pré thaw la fonte
constellation

country le pays moon la lune thunder le tonnerre

country(side) la campagne mountain la montagne tornado la tornade

mountain la chaîne de
current le courant tree l'arbre (m)
range montagnes

daffodil la jonquille mouth (river) l'embouchure (f) trunk le tronc

daisy la marguerite mud la vase tulip la tulipe

darkness l'obscurité (f) nature la nature valley la vallée

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 desert le désert north le nord view la vue

dew la rosée peninsula la péninsule water l'eau (f)

dust la poussière plain la plaine fresh water l'eau douce

earth la terre planet la planète salt water l'eau salée

watering
east l'est (m) plant la plante l'arrosoir (m)
can

farm la ferme pond l'étang (m) waterfall la cascade

pot (for la vague / l'onde

field le champ le pot de fleurs wave
plants) (f)

flower la fleur rain la pluie weather le temps

foam l'écume (f) rainbow l'arc-en-ciel (m) west l'ouest (m)

fog le brouillard river le fleuve wind le vent

foliage le feuillage rock le rocher world le monde

forest la forêt root la racine

60. To Live

vivre - to live, be alive (vee-vruh)

Present

vis vivons

vis vivez

vit vivent

The past participle of vivre is vécu and it is conjugated with avoir. Habiter is another verb that
means to live, but it means to live in a place. Vivre is used to mean the state of being alive. A
subjunctive form of vivre, vive, is often used in exclamations.
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Vive la France ! Long live France!

Vive le Kenya! Long live Kenya!

Vive tout le monde! Long live everyone!

Vive tous les francophones! Long live all French speakers!

Bibliographie

ielanguages.com/french1.html
http://www.frenchassistant.com/register.asp
www.frenchtutorial.com/

Practise what you have learnt in this book and you are on your way to mastery!!!

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